It's a Whimsical World
by Ayoshen
Summary: "You know how they say you see a white light when you die? Well, she wasn't expecting that kind of light." Cameron and Thirteen find themselves stuck in the realm of the dead with a slim chance of getting out. What's with all the mysteries? Cameron/13.
1. W1D0 Let the Games Begin

**Timeline:** End of the fourth season, perhaps a little jumbled. (Undefined in the TWEWY universe.)

**Pairing:** Eventual Cadley (Camteen). Not right off the bat, though.

**Rating:** T thanks to some language and violence, but so far I'm not thinking of going higher anytime soon. Might change, though. (You know, HLA. The world needs more of it. *wink wink*)

**Author's Pretty Darn Significant Note:** Ahoy, mateys! I realize this is probably the second most ridiculous crossover right after House/Pokemon, but it's been on my mind for months now and, you see, I'm continuously fascinated by the idea of Cameron and/or Thirteen dead. (Tough love for my favorite characters, that's all I can say.)

What I want to say is that **even if you've never played/seen/heard of The World Ends With You, all mechanics of the TWEWY universe will be explained** (because, obviously, neither have Cameron and Thirteen).

**And as always, I'm not a native English speaker. **Please, bear with me.

That said, buckle your seatbelts, 'cause this ain't Princeton anymore.

* * *

><p><strong>Week 1, Day 0: Let the Games Begin<strong>

Ah, the joys of night shifts. The wondrous echoes of passing time sang in her head as she got changed and left the building that had become a second home to her; left it along with her other self, which was to be found at the exact same spot the next day. The creased paper sign sat lonely at the back of her locker, the thick black number "13" in its center underlined by a more subtle "12th annual run" both looking at her expectantly, only to have their hopes crushed again. She kept the sign as an external memory core, a reminder of the time when people were nothing more than numbers and signs and nameless white coats. For the most part, that was still true for her assigned persona; a source of medically relevant facts and ideas underneath a number and a lab coat glossier than the surface of a cabin of a newly revealed Ferris wheel. For the next few hours, however, she would remain Remy.

She had successfully accomplished most of her daily chores. _Don't let House piss you off – check; don't tremble – check; save a life – check._ Today's jackpot was won by a certain Seth Griffiths, a rather long-term patient about her age, whose Lyme disease took the liberty of almost killing him; but then House experienced one of his infamous epiphanies and Seth was free to live happily ever after. Ding-dong. For one thing, dealing with the same person – and an annoying, inquisitive person at that – for weeks can be frustrating.

But that issue was now solved and, while waiting for another, she could go home and take a long, warm bath, and read some Tolstoy under the covers and… _What the hell?_

There it was; the all too familiar feeling of the thenar muscles in her left hand moving on their own accord. And there she thought she could last a whole day. She cursed under her breath and clenched her hand into a fist. Ever since she had had the misfortune of finding out about the lovely lifelong companion imprinted in her genes, the frequency of the tremors seemed to have increased. Either that, or she took more notice. Figures the immediate reaction to a thing of such character would be a string of paranoid hallucinations. That's what horror movies always take advantage of, isn't it; you may be so deep in trouble you would be digging your way out for the rest of your life and be fearless yet thanks to blissful ignorance, one of life's greatest gifts. However, once it takes its leave and you realize just how screwed you are, you become the lamb in the lion's den, trapped and _shaking_, and you wonder, has the lion always been watching you? Is he planning his next move? The constant fear was eating her alive, like a parasite.

And then there was Amber. The future right in front of her eyes, the past behind every corner, and the present nowhere to be found. She just didn't seem to find the right balance of them all.

In the middle of an internal debate over the unhealthy significance of hysteria in her condition and the potential benefits of her growing a backbone, she paid no attention to the fact that the tremor conveniently picked the middle of a lifeless road to visit. It was only lifeless until the bright headlights of a silver Ford Taurus, which was obviously very happy to see her, blinded her peripheral vision.

It wasn't the disease's fault when she stood frozen in place, suddenly unable to move a muscle as the vehicle hurried towards her. You know how they say you see a white light when you die? Well, she wasn't expecting that kind of light.

Closing her eyes shut was the only voluntary movement she was capable of as the screeching voice of the engine pierced the night.

_Get killed – check._

* * *

><p>"Remy Beauregard Hadley."<p>

Nor did she expect those words to be the first thing she'd hear after her death. In fact, she didn't expect any words at all. Yet there they were, close, stating the cold fact.

"A doctor – an internist – twenty six years old, diagnosed with Huntington's."

With all due respect, she was getting mildly irritated at even God – or whoever this was – using those words to describe her seconds after she so unexpectedly left the world of the living. There's more than that!

"Intelligent, devoted, compassionate and mysterious, among other things. You have potential; you meet the prerequisites."

There, that's bet- …Huh?

She opened her eyes to find out that, to her surprise, she was still standing with her hand in a fist, clutching it with the other. And standing in no ordinary space, for that matter; she frowned when she noticed a pair of yellow and black striped Moorish idols swimming around in circles under her feet. As far as technology and imagination had gone in the glorious United States of America, she had never seen a transparent aquarium _floor_. Not to mention an aquarium floor capable of holding many old fashioned-looking pieces of typical living room furniture and a – Good lord, was there an end to all those surprises? – huge pool table. "Say what?"

"I'm here to make you an offer."

She almost forgot about the unknown being speaking to her. As it turns out, the person was no more than a blond teenage boy at least a head shorter than her. The smirk on his face was rather unsettling, though. While this could have been just a normally strange conversation in a strangely normal environment, somehow, she just couldn't get over the tiny problem of her having died a few moments prior. If something hadn't gone terribly wrong, then she wasn't a Hadley. "I'm listening," Remy said, even though it came out as more of a question.

* * *

><p>"Allison Cameron. There's an interesting specimen, unmatched in kindness and grace, which is your greatest weakness. Frankly, I'm impressed. We don't have many like you around."<p>

The blonde doctor stopped dead in her tracks as where a dark road had been seconds ago, there was now solid glass and behind it probably an entire marine ecosystem. She looked around in panic and complete confusion. She wasn't dead. She was alive. She could go back there if you just showed her the way!

"Hush, little one. There's nothing to be scared of."

It was just a little boy, no older than seventeen, but the way he spoke frightened Cameron. "Who are you?"

"Call me Joshua. I'll be your guide here. Welcome to the Underground," he greeted her with open arms. "This place isn't what it used to be, but it's maintained its charm so far, don't you think?"

"You poor thing must be so confused," he mused when Cameron's astonishment refused to fade. "Say, how about I get straight to the point? Be my guest and make yourself comfortable; it might take a while to explain." He gestured towards an archaic armchair.

She walked over to it hesitantly and then looked at the boy, as if waiting for approval. He chuckled and motioned for her to sit down, so she rested herself in it, all the while eying Joshua suspiciously.

The boy paid no notice to the blonde's doubts. "Firstly, you need to understand the fact that you're dead. I'm sorry, but that's the way things are."

No. That couldn't be. She escaped death, she was sure of it! And yet she could think of no reasonable explanation for the sudden change of her surroundings. But she was alive, there was no arguing that. She could see, hear and feel, which are attributes fairly common in existing, living beings, no? She could think, albeit not too straight, and she could speak. And foremost, there was no God or Satan. No doubt she was still alive, but it didn't seem she could return home any time soon, and if she were to spend the next few moments of her life with this kid, she could as well listen.

"Now that we're clear, let me introduce you to the Underground, or UG, for short. The world you lived in before you came here is what we call the Realground, the RG. That's were most living people reside. You're here because I have the power to send you back there."

Allison was well aware that this kind of thing is never for free, even in movies or terribly messed up dream sequences. But he was offering her awakening, was he not? "But there's a catch," she half asked, half predicted.

Joshua smiled. "Bright girl! Obviously, we can't be reviving people back from the dead all the time, which is why we only choose the most powerful and valuable individuals."

She frowned, slightly offended; did he not understand that all life was sacred? If he wasn't God, how dare he judge the weight of one's deeds? Her subconscious wouldn't support that opinion, or would it?

"Which is why we have the game," he continued, remaining oblivious to her mental protests. "The point of the game is quite simple; your goal is to survive in the UG for seven days straight. However, in addition to that, every day, there's a mission for you and your partner to complete."

"My partner?" Her eyebrows shot up. This was getting weirder and weirder.

"Yes. Excuse me, I've explained this many times, you understand. I apologize if it's a little too much to comprehend, but I assure you that you will learn all you need to know. Now let me finish. The UG holds many surprises and dangers, one of which are the Noise. The Noise are creatures whose only purpose is to take your Soul – that is, erase you from existence entirely. Because the Noise exist in a special dimension between the RG and the UG and thus are split into two different planes at once – only in completely unrelated forms – there must be two players to defeat a single Noise, and that is why you will need to form a pact with another player, if, of course, you accept."

Cameron squinted and ran her hand through her hair. Although she wasn't taking this whole thing seriously, it piqued her interest, and it seemed like an elaborate matter. "So how am I to fight these Noise things?"

"I was hoping you'd ask," Joshua grinned. "That is the most fun part of the game. In the UG, there exist certain – pardon the cheesy Stan Lee-ish expression – _supernatural abilities_ accessible through the medium of what we call psych pins. They look like ordinary pins, but give you the means to, for example, create fire."

Now it was getting ridiculous. "So you're telling me I can burn a pseudo-beast using my will and an 'Obama for president' pin glued to my jacket," she deduced and put on her trademark 'oh please' face.

"Precisely," the boy confirmed. All of a sudden, there was a blinding orange flare as the armchair opposite her Joshua was sitting on burst into flames.

Cameron jumped and watched with her mouth open as the fire vanished just as fast as it appeared, with Joshua in the middle of it without so much as a scratch. There was an impish twinkle in his eyes that made her blood run cold. "P-point taken," she stuttered.

"This place is full of necessary evils," he stated matter-of-factly and leaned back in his seat. "Oh, I forgot to mention; the UG and RG exist in the same place. They look the same, they work the same; the only difference is that people in the RG won't be able to see or hear you. To explain this in a way more familiar to your kind, you are a ghost. You have no influence in the Princeton Realground." He paused and thought for a minute while playing with his hair. "I think we have the basics covered. Now the million dollar question – Do you accept the challenge?"

Cameron closed her eyes and counted to ten in her mind, hoping to appear back where she belonged the easy way. Nonetheless, when she opened them again, the only thing she saw was a seemingly amused young boy watching her intently with his fingers intertwined and his elbows on the arm rests. She buried her head in her hands. "I'm dead, aren't I?"

"Yes."

She nodded to herself and whispered: "I'm dead." Of course she was dead. There was no way she could have gotten out of death's grasp this time. Why did it have to be so inevitable? Why did one thing have to change everything? Why did she have to…

That was it. There was no way out. Live or die; no compromises, no middle ground. To be fair, apparently, there were not many people given that option, so she could as well grab the chance by the neck and kick and bite and never let go, because she was not ready to leave just yet. Maybe she still had a chance to set things right.

"I accept," she announced decidedly.

Her companion grinned once again. He seemed to have a messed up sense of humor, if nothing else. Then again, who knows how long he's been doing this. She would come face to face with death every day; actually _being_ death, however, is another thing. "Good call. Oh, one more thing; as an entry fee, that which your heart holds dearest will be taken from you. Not to worry, though! If you lose, you won't miss it anyway, will you?"

The startled doctor had no time to react as all of her surroundings turned into white. The pool table standing tall and proud was engulfed by a stream of light radiating from the cold walls of the cage of the undead. The Moorish idols melted and became one with the sea and in the blink of an eye, the entire kingdom evaporated into thin air, leaving her to fall into nothingness.

The players had crossed the Rubicon.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Posthumous Note:<strong> Why yes, the girls woke up in Dead God's Pad. (My apologies to those who haven't played the game and therefore won't understand this.)

On an unrelated note, when I found out Thirteen's middle name is "Beauregard", I barfed in my mouth. Remy Prettyglance Hadley? Seriously, writers? What is she, Canadian?


	2. W1D1 Find Your Partner

**Author's Note:** If anything seems, ahem, strange (for the lack of a better word) in this chapter, I can only keep saying that things will be cleared up. (I feel shamefully guilty for not explaining anything that has happened so far, but I promise you there's a reason for it all.) Keep reading and** reviews** are **love**.

* * *

><p><strong>Week 1, Day 1: Find Your Partner<strong>

The world was dull. She never noticed all the colors and the thousands of invisible worlds hidden within each and every passerby, nor did she ever think she would miss them, but now, when she no longer had the chance to explore those alternate realities, she felt incomplete, even though she was never part of them. She never yearned to be. They only provided a distraction, entertainment, a riddle to be solved. So many people, so many stories, all of them intertwining into the great web of human relations and more or less peculiar events. Remy was but one knot on the string, and if she were to disappear, she would immediately be replaced by five other, smaller knots, reeling and reeling and then spreading further. She felt as if she had never existed.

The troubled brunette was wandering aimlessly through the streets and for once in her life, she regretted not being able to tell anyone the most common word in the English language: "Hi." She sighed and pulled her phone out of the pocket of her jeans. The display still said the same thing.

_"Mission 1: Team up with another Player. You have two hours. Fail, and face erasure. – The Reapers"_

The junk mail from hell. Brilliant. Waking up on the sidewalk in broad daylight, she would think she only happened to get obscenely drunk and pass out (as per usual), if it weren't for the ticking clock imprinted on the palm of her hand. _1:46. 1:45. 1:44._ The Reapers didn't seem like a fun bunch, whoever they were. With every minute, the new red number engraving itself into her flesh reminded her that this was not a joke. How was she to even find out who else was a Player, let alone risk her life by putting it in their hands for the next seven days? She had no idea. All those people, all those knots looked exactly the same here.

She reached the Community Park and sat down underneath a pine tree, hoping to find comfort and time to think under its branches. She rubbed her temples. This was just the first mission, it couldn't be that difficult. Players had to be distinguishable or else none would ever pass! Then again, that might be the reason why she never heard of people coming back from the dead.

She shook her head and shunned that thought.

Easy. What were her options? She had her clothes, her phone and four pins; for starters, apparently. She refused to do anything involving her clothes, the phone already found its use in delivering the mission mail, so the only remaining tool were the pins. She frowned as she examined the first round little piece of metal. The design was that of a white tribal skull on a black background. The skull's forehead to the eyes slightly resembled a bat spreading its wings. On the side of the pin, there were the words "#000 Player Pin". Poignant. So she could go looking for white skulls or run around screaming "Anybody here a single Player?" For some reason, she didn't get the impression that would work very well.

_1:31._

She decided she would have better chances of expanding her lifespan if she moved down the hill to a small customised area with benches around a fountain in the center where people gathered. There was a strange aura of solace around. The fountain was that of a horse surrounded by large leaves on top of which water would pile up and then flow freely down into the small lake with nothing to obstruct its path and everyone jealous of its peaceful ways in silent wonder.

The pins had powers. The Player pin must have had some, too. If she could only figure out how to activate the damn thing! What did she need, a special enchantment or something?

"Abracadabra!"

Okay, that had no effect. After trying out a couple of common incantations, including quotes from the Harry Potter books and later on a few rather involuntary swear words and expressions of obligatory prayer and despair _("For the love of God, I beg you to summon a robot unicorn!"_), she decided to try it the old fashioned way of our elders, through concentration.

Focus. Just close your eyes and see the world.

_ The company is going downhill and now my employees are losing their morale. He is so fired._

_This song rocks!_

_But how should I propose? I could take her out on a picnic—no, the weather's bad—maybe I can make a romantic dinner myself—but I can't cook!_

_Am I hearing people's thoughts?_

_ My heart – heart is so jet-lagged, my heart – heart is so jet-lagged~ _

_ Oh please, don't think of singing anymore, my head's going to burst!_

_ I hope Gran's okay…_

_ Wait, are the__se my thoughts?_

_ I want a doggie! Mommy, mommy, buy me a doggie!_

_ Stop thinking! Stop it!_

She opened her eyes and fell to her knees as a sudden rush of immense exhaustion took over her body. So many voices! She could still hear them echoing in her mind and the resonance was making her dizzy and her vision blurry. So that was the Player pin's psych! Interesting, certainly, but how could it help besides giving her a nasty headache? She stood up with a grunt, thinking the pins could be a little more user-friendly. She could only hope she would get used to it.

After Remy got back on her feet, she thought she spotted a familiar figure. Someone was sitting on of the benches nearby. She squinted at the person. It was defiitely a woman. Her blonde, slightly wavy hair hung loosely on her shoulders in contrast with the darker leather jacket she was wearing. She was sitting hunched back facing the ground, so Remy couldn't see her face. However, as she got closer, she found out she didn't need to. She recognized the almost butterfly-shaped clip in the woman's hair, the petite form. It must have been her colleague, Allison Cameron. But what was Cameron doing there alone and looking so defeated?

She had never even talked to Cameron, but she knew for sure this was not like her. The way House would talk about her – _"The true Easter bunny! Some would say the fuzzy feeling you get upon seeing her is comparable to finding Waldo"_ – the way Foreman's voice got a pronounced hint of respect to it whenever her name was mentioned. _"Whenever she entered the room, she would always bring with her the terribly annoying, intoxicating, playful mood that we all needed," _he had said. _"I miss the polite smiles now,"_ he had said. Curiosity took the better of her as she once again pressed the Player pin to her chest.

_ We need a new schedule. There's no chance we'll be able to finish the project till the deadline._

_Quand je m'endors, tu te réveilles…_

_Out of my way! I'm so late! I'm so screwed! Aaaah!_

_I'm in dire need of a neck massage right now…_

_ …_

_ Where is she? I can't hear her…_

_ …_

_ Is she not thinking anything? Anything at all?_

_ The party's gonna be so awesome! I need to make sure everything's ready._

_ They'll send me to the director! Mom will kill me!_

_ Meeting at three, dinner at seven, must do shopping in between…_

_ …_

_ She's not there…_

It wasn't humanly possible. There wasn't the slightest hint of any images or words in Cameron's mind. Maybe Remy would hesitate if the other doctor were a man and therefore had "the nothing box" to think about nothing, but as far as anyone was concerned, Cameron was and always had been a member of the female species. Not that Remy ever had the chance to make sure with her own eyes-

And that did not occur to her just now.

No, there was only one way for her not to hear Cameron's thoughts.

"Dr. Cameron?" she adressed the older woman. There was no response.

"Cameron, I know you can hear me," she tried with more emphasis on her words.

That's where the blonde slowly raised her chin and met face to face with the ghost of her ghost. Were it under any other circumstances, she might even chuckle at the irony. "Dr. Hadley," she said and blinked in confusion. Though there were no tears, Remy could tell she had been crying thanks to the red rim of Cameron's eyes and the absence of the typical spark that used to be there whenever Remy passed her by in the hallway on the third floor.

After contemplating her next move and opening and closing her mouth repeatedly a couple of times, the brunette realized just how awkward a situation she got herself into. How to get the necessary information out of her without making her more upset, that was the question. Is it nobler to have compassion for the fellow suffering a cruel fate, or to fight against all those troubles by putting an end to them once and for all?

Just as she was beginning to form a coherent sentence in her mind, Cameron took the plunge. "Leave me alone, I'm of no use to you anyway," she whispered and got back to the staring contest with the cobblestones she had been participating in, apparently determined to win.

Awkward.

Well, that settled things. Thirteen frowned, noticeably taken aback by the usually outgoing doctor's reaction. She was obviously not in the mood to engage in either serious planning or casual chitchat in the afterlife. Not knowing what else to do, Remy decided to try her luck elsewhere.

It took her, paradoxically, precisely thirteen steps until she stopped, her hands in her pockets. She would never forgive herself if by a stupid, twisted chance, she got back without Cameron; which she would, considering the fact that the other woman didn't exactly seem to be making an effort. She didn't even know her, she didn't care, but she knew the others did. They would miss her and they would ask questions and she would never again walk through the front door in the morning with the subtle tail of light and cheerful vibe following her where she would go. The Noise were drawn to negative emotions; if they could feel it, they would probably tear her apart before her time actually ran out. Of course, she couldn't mention that, because that would only make Cameron more depressed. Besides, she seemed to be the only one dead around these parts.

Oh for God's sake, fine, she would talk to her. She rolled her eyes and sighed before backtracking.

"What is it? You accepted the offer and now you're just sitting here waiting for the end? Why didn't you just die right away!" she basically yelled with more anger in her voice than she meant, surprising even herself. As soon as the words left her throat, she realized that was probably not the best idea and blushed slightly. She had no right to judge Cameron's choices, in life or death. "I'm sorry, I just don't understand-"

"There's no point in any of this," the blonde said without looking up.

"What do you mean? Of course there's a point, the point is that you can live! You just need to try!"

"We'll never win. They won't let us. There's no way…"

The taller woman grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her. "Cameron, snap out of it! You're here because you chose this, because you're a warrior! Then stop whining, get the hell up and fight! How can you give up this chance? Because you're not getting another! If you don't listen to me, you're going to wind up _dead_ for all eternity!" she shouted.

She immediately regretted the offensive choice of words when the panic-stricken blonde looked up at her, tears running freely down her cheeks. She was no good at this, damn it! She had never been any good at providing encouragement or advice. Sarcasm and judging were her thing, and after having found the person particularly dumb, slapping reason into their heads. But it had always worked! Until this one came along, so unbearably broken that slaps would only leave bruises on her pretty face and nothing but deeper wounds in her mind. They were dead. They were going to die for real unless Cameron remembered the fundamental principle of being a doctor – how to never surrender. Why had it worked in life but not in death?

_0:43._

House had said Cameron liked damaged people. She liked having a charity case to hide from her own troubles and find momentary fulfillment in helping others – or so Remy thought. She could play those strings. Or just say the truth.

"Cameron, I need you to stay focused. You're the only one who can help me here. We're in this together. I don't know what it is that they took from you, but you want it back, right? I can get you there, but you need to let me, and by doing that, you'll allow _me_ to return what I've lost, along with our lives. It's a win-win. Come on, please?" she proclaimed and watched the emerald green expectantly to see the spark reappear, if only for just a glimmer. Even though she didn't intend to let it show, she was getting nervous, both from minutes seeming like seconds and the impending presence of the Noise. _They must be close by now._

_0:42._

"Will you forge a pact with me?"

To her disappointment, the spark stayed concealed; instead Allison gave her a reassuring nod. It wasn't much, but it was a start. "Good. Then take my hand and get up because we've got work to do," she said, holding out her hand.

If there was no way of achieving her goal, Cameron could at least attempt to help Thirteen get there on her own, even though it would probably prove to be a futile effort. On the bright side, she really had nothing more to lose, did she? With that in mind, she let her younger colleague pull her up to her feet.

While their hands were still touching, a string of bright blue light emerged from Thirteen's fist and the pocket on Cameron's chest, dying the whole world. The snakes crawled around the two women, wrapping them both in their embrace, then carefully went their calculated way around their joined hands, forming a new knot in the great web. The azure reptiles hissed and danced the mating dance before completing the ritual with a passionate kiss.

"What's with the light show?" the blonde asked with a frown, looking around and then at her new companion to see if she is as clueless as she was.

"I think it's the Player pins. They're… connecting somehow?" Thirteen replied, just as confused.

And then the snakes died hugging one another and dissolved into the air together. The Underground regained all the reds and greens and yellows.

"I assume that's how they make it official." Suddenly, Remy winced as she felt a sharp pang on her palm. She gripped her wrist tightly and saw that the damaged skin was slowly healing itself, reverting back to its living state over the fading numbers. "We made it," she said in amazement.

"We did?"

Remy thought she saw what must have been the famous spark for a brief moment. She frowned. "You see anything weird?"

Cameron looked around. "No, should I?"

"It's too quiet. There's no one here. You might not have noticed, but I'm pretty sure there were dozens of people a few minutes ago," she said, worry evident in her voice. The silence was unnatural, to say the least. The birds' chipper singing had been replaced by the eerie whistles of the cold wind and the sun intimidated by a swarm of grey.

In the stillness that had arisen, a soft thud echoed. "Did you hear that?" Cameron whimpered.

Thud. Remy was too stunned to respond. Thud, thud. Each louder and closer than the last. Soon there were several little thuds around. It sounded like the paws of a beast gently tapping the ground as it circles its prey. "Take out whichever pins you have. Here they come," the brunette said, holding each of her four pins between her fingers. _Thank you very much, Miss Whiny,_ she was tempted to add, but managed to keep her mouth shut.

The thuds had stopped for a while short, but long enough for the two Players to begin to think the danger had passed. Just then, a grey smudge jumped at Thirteen out of the bushes. Fortunately she was quick to react, grabbing one of the pins – a yellow and orange lines forming a scheme roughly resembling a highway with two exits – and pressing it to her chest. _Okay, so, how does this work? How about "Get rid of that thing that wants to kill me!" _As soon as she spoke the words in her mind, a shining three-way bullet launched itself at its target, two of its parts striking it in the air. The smudge sharpened and fell to the ground.

Thirteen looked at the startled Cameron to notice a similar smudge rushing towards her in the background. "Behind you, take it down!"

The blonde spun around and her gaze met the dark wolf Noise. It was no ordinary wolf; while its head, torso and hind legs were covered in ruffled hairs, only sharp-cut blueish bones remained where its front limbs and tail should have been, some of them not even connected properly, yet the fact didn't prevent this bizarre creature from moving with the speed and certainty of the real quadruped. Both Players were also equally sure its claws and fangs were just as lethal. Its tail was divided into two flexible whip-like, metallic bones, and mischievous eyes lined with blue markings.

"I don't even know how to use this thing!"

"Just believe in it!" Remy shouted over the Noise's growling. When she grabbed another of her pins in order to aid Cameron from afar, she heard another growl; the wolf she had previously taken down had got back on all fours. The next thing she knew, her back hit the ground and she found herself pinned to it, her line of sight limited to two lovely rows of spiky fangs. _Not good, not good at all._

Cameron shut her eyes. _Please don't let it get me!_

The silence was broken by a fearsome cry. The blonde doctor opened her eyes again to see the wolf struggling, wrapped in a white barbed wire that seemed to have sprung from the tiles. It moved by itself, slowing the creature down and strangling it until it could move no further. The wolf let out one last howl before falling to pieces along with the wire.

Thirteen's breathing hitched as she stared into the mouth of the devil. Her pins were scattered to the side and no matter what she though, none of it would work without them. Just as she thought the wolf would soon familiarize itself with her neck, one of the wooden benches flew and knocked it off her.

"It says 'Psychokinesis'," Cameron said and shrugged when she saw Remy's amazed expression as her companion stood up.

The wolf met its end in a way truly worthy of the devil, consumed by flames. Thirteen blew the imaginary smoke off her pin theatrically.

"That was…" she said after making sure there were no more uninvited guests, "That was AWESOME!"

Allison's jaw dropped a little as she watched her colleague stare at her pins, then the spots where the wolves disappeared, then at Cameron and finally back at the pins in utter childlike astonishment. "Are you kidding me? We could have been erased!" she scolded the other woman. There was no way she would understand such behavior after having almost died.

"Are you _blind_? I mean, did you see th– _did you SEE that_? I can shoot bullets out of the tip of my finger! We're like all the X-Men in one, I mean in two! We're like Batman and Robin! Spiderman and the Black Cat!" A-ha, a Marvel fan. That explained a lot.

Cameron couldn't help but put an amused smile on display – for the first time since her death – at Thirteen creating random spheres of spirit fire all over the place and then extinguishing them again with her mere thought. She shook her head at her. "I think you're getting a bit too excited about this, but before you start making up our superhero aliases, I refuse to be the sidekick."

"What, you think your share of the victory is bigger than mine? You wouldn't have even noticed the second wolf if I hadn't told you!"

"You would have become the first one's lunch if I hadn't hurled the bench at it," Cameron deflected the accusation.

"I saw them coming!"

"Technically, I almost killed two."

"You want to settle this in a duel?"

"No."

"Yes, you do. You're challenging me!"

"What in the world do you think you're—Hey, watch what you're aiming at, woman!"

"Get back here, chicken little!"

The blonde boy sitting on top of an adjacent pine tree laughed in a tinkling voice. This week was going to be so much fun!

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Posthumous Note:<strong>I'm having **SO** incredibly much fun with this. I'm giggling like an idiot right now. Not satisfied with my writing, but if you could only see the gears spinning in my head… Oh boy, if you could SEE them. This week is going to be so much fun indeed. Prepare yourself for the next chapter which will hopefully offer some revelations!

Also, childish!13 FTW. I need to counter all those angsty, bitter moments with _some_ optimism, don't you think?


	3. W1D2 Trust Your Partner

**Week 1, Day 2: Trust Your Partner**

Listening to Princeton's voice was enough for her to feel at peace for a moment. The grass tickling her face and the breeze rushing its invisible fingers through her hair lulled her into never wanting to open her eyes. She felt as if she had slept through the creation of the world and a million years' worth of evolution, yet the only thing she wanted was to go back to sleep. The people and the birds were back, reshaping the park into its former glory. She was just so exhausted, listening to their lullabies.

She heard an incredulous "Are you sucking your thumb?" from somewhere next to her.

"Ahhm nard, let me shleep," she mumbled, rolling onto her side.

"I'm positive there's a fingernail, which belongs to you, in your mouth."

At that moment, Cameron realized just whom she was talking to. She jerked up abruptly, wide awake and trying to conceal the blatant red tint her cheeks were getting by looking the other way. She could hear Thirteen's muffled laughing. "To be fair, you snore."

The laughing stopped. "Touché," Thirteen snorted. "How did we fall asleep, anyway? I don't even recall seeing the stars and it's barely noon."

"I don't remember anything after you attempted to kill me." She shot her partner a snarky look and got a 'stop exaggerating' one in return. "We must have lost consciousness after completing the mission."

"Great, we can't even enjoy being dead for a while," the brunette grumbled. She checked her phone for the fifth time in the last thirty minutes. "Still no mission mail, but at least now I've got your attention…" She ignored Cameron's piercing glare. "I figured we should try out the other pins to see what they do."

The other doctor had to admit that made sense. Wouldn't want to get confused in the middle of a heated battle, would we? "Well, I've got two more I didn't use yesterday." She pulled one out of her pocket. It was a blue pin with a white slanted M in the middle of it, circled by two semicircles. "Huh? It's got the weirdest name… How do you even pronounce this? May-suh-moo something…" she said with a frown.

Thirteen snatched the pin from her hands. "Give me that. It looks Japanese. Number 81, Masamune. Come on, it's not that hard. Mah-sah-moo-ne."

Cameron blinked. "You speak Japanese? What does that mean?"

"I've got the basics covered," the brunette shrugged. "Masamune was one of Japan's greatest swordsmiths of the 13th century, so I assume this is a melee kind of weapon. According to a legend, Masamune's pupil, Muramasa, challenged him to see who could make the better sword. When they were done, they lowered their creations into the river's current. While Masamune's sword didn't cut a single thing, Muramasa's slashed through fish, leaves and air alike, so he thought he had surpassed his master. One of the monks at the monastery then said that Masamune's sword was the finer one, since it understood it was not supposed to serve as a weapon against the innocent. What's the other one?" she asked, oblivious to her colleague's puzzled expression.

After getting over the initial shock of witnessing Thirteen's seemingly quite extensive knowledge of the history of Japan, Cameron pulled out the last of her pins. "Well, this one is pretty straightforward – 268, Cure Drink."

"I surely hope the regeneration part isn't as uncomfortable as when the wound the clock leave heals itself," the other replied and rubbed the palm of her hand subconsciously at the memory. Then she remembered she had a few unused pins of her own. "187, Thunder Rook," she said, examining the blue pin with the same lightning bolt in various shades and the words 'Pegaso' across its surface. A hopeful smile appeared on her face. "Does this mean I can fire lightning?"

"Woah, woah, woah, you're not doing anything with that thing near me!" Cameron exclaimed and stumbled back a few steps.

"Sheesh, it's not like I'm going to try it on you." Remy rolled her eyes. "Next up; Number 1, Ice Blow." This one depicted an icicle piercing a purple background with what looked like two distant stars on the right side. "Shiny."

"Is that all?" Allison asked, still not particularly sure it was safe to get back into her partner's close vicinity.

"Yeah."

"Thank god." She let out a heavy sigh of relief.

Thirteen narrowed her eyes at her. "You're no fun. Come on, let's try these out!" she said excitedly and grabbed the blonde's hand, dragging her towards a very unfortunate fir tree that would have run at the sight of her if it had had legs. _Burn, baby, burn!_

The blonde hissed through gritted teeth and jumped as she watched a bolt of lightning descend on top of the fir and set it on fire. "Stop it, we have no water to put it out!" she shouted and tugged at Thirteen's sleeve.

The taller woman grinned. "Easy. Watch this." _Expire!_ As fast as the fire appeared, it vanished, leaving the tree in perfect condition. _Guess the pins support Masamune's ideology._

"Do you think people can see it?" Cameron asked, looking around to make sure no one was calling the police.

"If they did, there would be a bunch of dumbfounded spectators already. Your turn."

"No, it's too dangerous. We're never one hundred percent sure how they work. I might hurt someone!" the blonde exclaimed and took a defensive stance with her arms crossed over her chest.

"It's only dangerous if you let yourself think it's dangerous," Remy pointed out. "Relax. It's fun!"

Cameron sighed. She knew there was no way she was getting out of this, so she decided to comply and squeezed the Masamune.

Nothing happened. "Are you sure you're trying hard enough?"

The blonde shot her a look. "Of course I am. I've done this before, remember?"

"Let me try," Remy said and took the pin from her hands. The pins listened to every possible command; there was no way one wouldn't work at all, was there?

_Show me what you can do!_ And the pin obeyed. Rays of light shone from her fingertips and stretched forward, overlapping and surpassing one another before they settled in the form of a sword's blade connected to her hand only by a few still pulsating streaks. "Sweet!" Thirteen whispered to herself as she tried slowly waving her arm in front of her, examining the strange weapon. An impish grin crossed her face as she ran past the plant and swiftly slashed forward with her hand when she was close enough. Then she turned around to see the trunk cut in half. However, though it should have fallen, instead (to her dismay) Remy watched the bark recreate itself along the line.

"Why is it recovering from the damage so fast?"

"Figures we wouldn't be able to mess with the RG much unless we're in battle. My question is, why didn't it work for me?"

"Maybe some players can only use some pins. A sword doesn't really fit you, either."

"What do you mean? I'm a doctor, cutting people is basically my job," Cameron remarked, not seeing much of a difference.

Thirteen smirked quizzically. "Nevermind."

Next up was the Ice Blow. When it listened to none of Remy's orders, she let Cameron give it a try. _Do your thing!_ A no less than ten feet tall, sturdy icicle shot up from the ground without warning. The grass and flowers around it stood frozen solid, the beauty that found salvation from the scorns of time enclasped by the gentle touch of the ice. The blonde found herself marveling at the sealed perfection before it thawed and was reduced to ashes. Where the ice caused pain, it caused it with grace and without thirst for blood or violence, preserving the last spark of one's life forever. It did fit her more than a sword.

"Nice move, Ice Queen!"

"Shut up, Thunderball," Cameron shouted, eyes still fixed on the dying dandelion. Why would she even feel sorry for a flower? It probably still lived on the other side. "By the way, are these our superhero nicknames? Because that's pretty lame."

Her companion shrugged. "I can always call you Barbed Wire, if you prefer that one."

"Thanks but, I'll pass."

Thirteen watched the blonde kneeling where the icicle had been and tilted her head to the side sligthly. What a peculiar creature this woman was, shooting witty remarks one moment, crying the next, but always innocent on the outside. She was fascinating in her own, I-don't-want-to-have-anything-to-do-with-her-when-this-is-over way; although beautiful like ice from afar, it felt like she would burn her skin from up close. It did fit her more than a sword. In a way, her behavior frightened Thirteen. If there was a butterfly pin, there was no doubt it would belong to her only.

Little did she know Cameron thought similarly of her partner.

"How about the Cure Drink? You're not going to try that?" she asked when her Cameron-examinating train of thought reached the last stop.

"I don't have anything to heal," the older woman said plainly and shrugged.

"Then hurt me," Remy suggested; then she realized that must have sounded quite messed up for someone as literal as said blonde. "I don't mean break my leg. I mean scratch me with that wire of yours or something. Just a little to see if it works, duh!" she clarified, rolling her eyes.

"You're suicidal," the baffled doctor responded in disbelief. "No way. What if I lose control of it? You'd be toast."

"My god, you're such a wimp. I've been through worse." _Lend me your power, Masamune._

"Dr. Hadley!" Cameron yelled, watching helplessly as the idiot of a partner drew a line with what might have as well been red ink on her palm with the spirit sword. Thirteen thought she was going to bitch-slap her repeatedly right then and there as she stumbled over to her. Instead, the older doctor took a deep breath and said "You're a fool" and reached for the green pin with an orange vector tin can on it.

The crimson ink stopped flowing and then went back in its own footsteps as if time had forgotten something important and hurried back home to get it.

"Which might have, you know, saved our lives."

Suddenly, both of their phones rang at once.

"_Mission 2: Defeat Noise #16 in the stadium. You have until midnight. Fail, and face erasure. __– The Reapers"_

"They have numbers now?" Remy wondered aloud.

"So do you," Cameron remarked. However, the thought of there being at least fifteen – and possibly even more – other kinds of Noise was rather unsettling. Both Players winced in pain as the Reapers' clock marked them for the second time.

"The stadium is a few miles from here, but still, we have almost twelve hours left. Why give us so much time?"

"Maybe they think we're limp." The blonde raised an eyebrow meaningfully to make it obvious what (or more precisely, whom) she was hinting at, causing her younger fellow to chuckle.

* * *

><p>"What's your name?" asked Cameron after the two of them passed through several not so busy streets, by Conte's Bar – The key is the sausage! –, past the couples counselor's office… in absurd silence because neither of them had anything to say, each occupied by their own hidden thoughts, some darker than others. People had always said they would need to learn to get along with whomever their teacher or boss would assign to their team, and Cameron had considered herself collaborative, but this goal was too plain to allow for a constructive conversation; go there, kill that, or get killed. It required no complicated thought processes, no jumping to conclusions at the sight of a new possibility, like the binary code. One, zero, zero, one. Neither was accustomed to such circumstances, to say the least.<p>

"Thirteen," replied the other, giving her a look that clearly expressed doubts about Cameron's mental health.

"I know what they call you. I was asking your name." Cameron imitated the look.

The internist fixed her gaze on the sidewalk, hands in the pockets of her ragged jeans. "Why do you want to know?"

The blonde followed her example, eyes nervously darting from side to side.

"Don't say anything; let me guess. You're thinking that it would be nice if you at least knew the name of the only person who's going to be there when you die," she deduced, facing the other woman. When there was no response except for the guilty, inconcpicuous nod, Thirteen sighed. People and their pathetic need to bond before time runs out, hoping to be granted redemption. They need to not feel alone. What was worse, she understood that feeling.

"But it's not that I'm implying you—"

"We're going to die, Cameron. In fifty or sixty years, we're going to die, knowing that we've drained life of all we could, with a smile on our face and our families holding our hands. And, naturally, House banging the EKG with his flame cane." At least she managed to elicit a sad smile from the other doctor's lips. "Look, if during the next six days there comes a time when I'm down and absolutely sure I'm not going to make it – then I will tell you my name. Deal?"

Allison's emerald green met with the greyish undertones in Remy's eyes. "Deal," she said with a weak smile.

All of a sudden, Thirteen surprised the ER head by posing an unexpected, but quite appropriate question: "How did you die?" It was only fair for her to know and maybe Cameron, being the open type, would actually like to confide in her. They had passed away in virtually the same place at the same time, a fact that should alone be regarded with caution. It was too improbable a coincidence. Besides, how could things get any more personal than this, with the two of them being the only people existing in this obscure dimension? _She must have been trying to save a drowning kitten and the water had pulled her down._ Remy giggled to herself, then cleared her throat when guilt caused her to reevaluate just what she was giggling about.

"I was trying to save a drowning kitten when the water pulled me down," the questioned replied matter-of-factly.

She came to a halt, mouth agape. "You're kidding."

Cameron stopped as well and turned back half-way to witness the stupefied Thirteen standing still like a statue. "Yes," she replied with a stone cold expression.

The other woman let out a subtle sigh of relief, mentally cursing herself for actually believing such a silly excuse for a second. The goody two-shoes Cameron knew how to screw with people's heads after all! "So you're not going to tell me how it happened? What could you possibly be ashamed of? Were you trying out some kinky stuff in bed? ´Cause, you know, I won't tell anybody when we get back, but I might want to ask you for some tips, since it must have been really good." They started walking again and Remy attempted to keep up with her colleague, who obviously hadn't the slightest intention of speaking honestly about the matter at hand.

"The fact that it got me dead makes it really good? Your values seem pretty messed up. I wouldn't want to end up under the sheets with you, if that's the case."

Ow! And there Remy thought she had her. What was going on in that twisted mind of hers? Either way, she was not going to let this innuendo-filled conversation come to waste. Why, bold flirting with other women and/or interrogating them was one of her hobbies, and meeting such a discreet challenger felt refreshing in this black and white world. "So you're saying you were?"

"I don't think it would make you stop talking; much to the contrary, so I'm going to say no."

Damn, she was good. "Would you stop deflecting?"

"What does it matter whether we fell off a cliff or whether we got our heads chopped off by a dark Jedi with a lightsaber? We're both just plain dead!" the blonde snapped, catching her off-guard.

It was fun not being the one with all the dirty little secrets for once; however, it was much less fun to not know those dirty little secrets. Besides, Cameron and mysteries? What was the world coming to? Thirteen realized that this was not a game for her. She was talking to the one who had no idea how to break the most arbitrary rules; the one who never crossed the street without looking to both sides first, the one who undoubtedly knew how to make a fallen nightingale come back to life. She probably carried a first aid kit in her purse. Something must have happened, and that something was none of her business. "I'm sorry," she whispered in an apologetic tone and made a mental note not to bring it up anytime soon. What could her entry fee possibly have been? What she valued most, her life, had already been taken from her.

There was no answer.

For that matter, what was hers?

* * *

><p>The Princeton Stadium in all its rusty glory. There it stood, looming over the in comparison miniature brick houses with slanted roofs and unknowing families ignorant of the fight for survival that was happening right under their noses underneath. The closer they approached it, the greyer the skies and with them the courage and determination of the two women seemed to escape with every step and every breath and float away to join their grey brothers. Already there were terrifying images of all the possible appearences of Noise #16 on their minds. Huge dire wolves transforming into vicious felines and swarms of sixteen-legged Black Widows tore any coherent thoughts.<p>

The gate was unlocked as if urging them to go on – no doubt the Reapers' doing – though walking through felt like crossing an invisible barrier, behind which lied Tartarus itself; unseen, unheard, just an illusion. The two fellows had no choice but to listen to Pan's perish song as they passed between the cold, observing walls.

Thirteen noticed Cameron's reluctant steps and quickened breathing. "Calm down. It's _supposed_ to scare us." _Roses are red, violets are blue, in times like these, I wish I could slap you for making me nervous._

But the walls, along with the fear, subsided as daylight smiled upon them again when they stepped over the threshold and onto the green grass carpet of the field. And then they were eighteen again and all set to graduate high school and receive their diplomas in front of all those people long gone, who filled the seats and waited patiently for them to walk up to the stage. The question was, where was the stage?

"Maybe it's small and hidden in here somewhere and we're supposed to find it, that's why we've been given so much time," the blonde mused.

The younger woman took a few cautious steps forward, watching out for anything unusual of significance. There was nothing but the twilight and the sound of countless car engines purring in the distance. "I suppose so. Let's spli—"

The rest of the sentence was doomed to be left hanging in the air as an ear-piercing roar drove away the purrs. Both women looked up simultaneously just in time to see Noise #16 jump off the platform and lunge in their general direction. It assumed the form of a giant grizzly bear walking on its hind legs. Its fur was the color of a dim street lamplight for the most part with a strange coat of dark brown over the shoulders and feet. However, where its arms should have been, there was a set of of floating bones and joints ending in four claws, each of which as long as a human head. It looked like even a tender touch of the Noise's hairs would cut through steel. Indigo war markings covered its chest and legs. As a confidence boost, the two women got a clear view of its snowy fangs as it growled at them, not pleased with the invasion of its territory.

Luckily, they recovered soon enough to establish defenses. Seconds later, there was a small lane of wires in the grizzly's way, reaching all the way across the field from one side to the other, and rays of light bullets hurrying towards it.

The bear tore through the wires like grass and cut the bullets in half with its deadly talons easily without so much as a scratch, but instead even more enraged.

Another set of wires wrapped itself around its bony arms and feet, slowly absorbing it whole, and lightning swept down on the entrapped demon, burning its skin. The bear let out a roar that made shivers run up Cameron's spine and fell down to its knees. "Is it dead yet?"

The crimson twinkle in its eyes should have been a sufficient answer in itself, but it wasn't until it leapt at her stupefied companion that there was no doubt, no time, and no escape.

Blood sprayed the field as Thirteen's body was thrown in the air and landed with a loud bang, three long cuts decorating her chest. "Great – now my – jacket is ruined," she whispered in between abrupt gasps in a husky voice.

It was no use trying to rise up; for every inch she moved to push herself up, more pressure built on her back like a cross. The miserable remnants of color seeped away from her blurry vision. She felt her muscles give in and let her collapse to the ground. She had been there, she had seen the impending darkness once before, only two days ago when she was lying in the middle of the road still able to see the tires carrying the car away and hear the distant honking, until it was over. She had been determined not to let it happen again so soon. Well, you can't always get what you want. Right now, she regretted ever making a promise to Cameron.

_My name…_

As her surroundings melted into a monochromatic smear in front of her eyes, she reappeared back on the road. Except something was different. There were no headlights and no victorious cries of the engine. In their stead, bright beams battled relentlessly for dominance in the wavering skies and multiple voices settled in the background.

_Thirteen!_

Such a hopeless cry. If only she could remember whom it belonged to… Where she was, where she had been going, whom she lost, what her name was.

It all happened so fast. It always happens so fast.

_Let her live!_

The puddle of blood dried up. Wait, no, it didn't; it got smaller and smaller, gradually retreating, but the liquid didn't simply disappear. It flowed back through the gushing wounds and into Thirteen's veins, where it was much needed. Every drop found its way back, defying all laws of gravity; sir Newton was no doubt rolling in his grave as the pin worked the magic it was made for and the cuts closed themselves over the exposed flesh.

The brunette gasped and struggled for air to make up for her now virtually nonexistent supply of oxygen. She jerked up and instantly found herself pulled into Cameron's tight embrace.

"Thirteen," was the only thing the blonde's mind clouded by incoherent pleas and thanks to God could transform into an audible word.

"Are you trying to kill me again? I kind of need to breathe a lot at the moment, you know, so, if you'd be so kind," uttered her partner while still trying to fill her lungs with something other than blood. "What about the bear?"

"I trapped it—"

The doctor was cut off by the sound of glass shattering as the vile creature tore through numerous ice walls that imprisoned it. Shards rained on the field.

_Apparently neither of us knows when to die._

"Watch out!" the brunette yelled and snatched the bear's prey away from its claws that threatened to provide the same fate Thirteen herself had experienced moments before.

It was no use. No matter how many bullets it took, how many wires strangled it or how much Remy tried to set its fur on fire, it always evaded the bullets, broke free from the wires' grasp and put the fire out. They were both getting exhausted but the beast was relentless. They couldn't hit it with icicles or thunderbolts and Thirteen knew getting anywhere nearer to slash it would be suicide.

But they needed to slow it down. There was no other way.

"I have an idea!" Thirteen yelled while running around in circles and evading all the claws, teeth and feet trying to kick her. "Make as many icicles as you can, preferably all over the place! Then I'll make them melt with fire, and then, when we're at least swimming in a lake," she ducked to avoid having her head separated from her body in a violent way, "then you'll materialize one of those wires of yours and we'll hold onto it and you'll lift us up while I electrocute his ass off! How does that sound?"

"It's too dangerous! You might fry us both!"

"Trust me!"

And so the field changed into a frozen forest of stalagmites. The two Players got lost in a maze, both trying to hide from the Noise. The temporary refuge the icy pinnacles offered was pleasant, but soon they had to face the sun again, and the forest became a lake, soaking their feet. It didn't take long for the bear to locate its targets.

_ Why does it always choose me?_ Thirteen thought as she gathered the rest of her strength and ran, ran as fast as she could. "Now, do it now!"

"No! There's another way!"

"Cameron, I can't last much longer! Sometimes you have to risk a little to gain more!" That was the last thing Remy said before her knees gave in. The water splashed the dirt.

_I will protect her._ There was only one direction the bear would go now. It was impossible to miss. _I can't, there's no way…_

A magnificent ice mountain rose sharply in front of the animal, breaking its outstretched arm and separating it from his victim, but that was minor damage compared to the original intention. _I aimed too far?_

The Noise cried out in pain as metallic bones scattered about and smashed the ice into pieces in rage.

_Time to say my prayers._ Remy looked up at the creature that no doubt meant her final death with fear in her eyes and watched it dash towards her in slowmotion. Her vision turned purple like the paw aiming at her head._ Damn you, Cameron. Damn you to hell._

"My name is—"

Suddenly, the bear froze in place and as soon as the last of its muscles – whether it even was muscles that kept the Noise going – stopped moving, the cold silence previously interrupted only by howls and growls lost to a surge of waves of the deafening melodies of what could best be compared to a chainsaw. Noise #16 cracked from had to toe, and shattered. Where its figure stood blocking out the sky, a teen girl and boy were smirking victoriously.

"Highfive! Mission cleared!" the brown-haired girl declared. "Killing Noise with noise, how poignant. Thanks for the distraction, girls."

Thirteen blinked in confusion as she sat in the puddle and tried to comprehend what had just happened. "Wait, that means the two of us are going to die?"

"No, dummy; whichever pair completes the mission, we all get to pass to the next day. Didn't they tell you that?" _They must have forgotten about that part._ "Well, I can smell a lovers' quarrel in the air, so we'll get going now and let you guys settle things for yourselves. See ya in day three!" Without another look at either of them, the two alien Players disappeared in the dark corridor of the stadium.

Cameron rushed over to the other doctor to help her up, but Thirteen shoved her away.

"My, my, my. I am disappointed in you."

The two women looked up towards the direction of the voice simultaneously and saw the all too familiar blond boy frowning at them from the platform disapprovingly.

"Don't you have any idea what partnership means?" Thirteen would bet her 'unlife' his words were directed at her so-called partner. "Trust your partner. That is the fundamental rule of the UG. A Player who cannot follow this rule doesn't deserve to be a Player at all."

"But it was—" Cameron tried to defend herself.

"Dangerous? It was a good plan. It could have turned out nicely if you had defied your fears. Stop blaming the danger instead of your own incompetence. You're living in a perilous world. Deal with it."

Those words cut worse than ice, because deep down, Cameron knew all this. She knew that the only thing stopping her from placing her trust in Remy when she realized the other must have been facing the same issue was the fear of futility she could do nothing about. She knew she had to believe in Thirteen, and herself – but she did not.

"If you want to survive the next day, play by the rules. Trust your partner or face erasure. Are you willing to sacrifice both of your chances?"

The world was dyed white again as Joshua's words resonated in Allison's mind.

_Trust your partner. _

* * *

><p><em>"A moment of your time, please. – I don't appreciate you interfering with the Game. This is my Underground and my rules."<em>

_"That's why I like you! You're never afraid to voice your opinion, even though I could erase you in this very spot. How bold of you. Still, I was asked to supervise this round, so it is part of my duty to ensure everything goes smoothly."_

_"'Smoothly' doesn't equal aiding and chatting with humans! The purpose of the game is to erase as many Players as possible, not let them through!"_

_"And I will do that when the time comes, I assure you. Me offering guidance is nothing but a consolation prize."_

_"I hope you realize that even your favorite proxies will have to face erasure."_

_"Certainly, Conductor."_

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Holy mother of God, this chapter took FOREVER. If you actually managed to get through, I salute you and offer cookies, dear reader, for you are made of win. I'm supposed to be doing a buttload of work I have due Friday, but the fic just wouldn't let me sleep. I blame it entirely.

And I promise there will be some actual answers in the next one. Seriously.


	4. W1D3 Aid Your Partner

**Week 1, Day 3: Aid Your Partner**

Betrayal sires two children – regret and resentment. The three walk hand in hand in the shadows, all three resurfacing where one has wandered. Regret cradles the thoughts your mind projects as guilt for ever giving yourself away to the traitor, while resentment chains the heartstrings in your chest and fuels you with thirst for revenge. All three talked to Thirteen. This entire game never worked the way it was supposed to work. It wasn't Cameron who put her trust in her and it wasn't Thirteen who betrayed Cameron, like the normal order of things would have it, if it ever came to that. It was all upside down and she had let herself blindly follow the trail to the lion's den, ever since she took the thirteen steps away from the other doctor and stopped instead of walking on like she should have.

But in the end, it wasn't Thirteen who felt more like crap.

"I'm so sorry," the blonde mumbled for about the billionth time that morning. "Are you hurt?"

Of course she wasn't; even if the pin hadn't healed her, the night would have, as it reverted even her clothing to its prior, non-cut state. But she had a feeling that wasn't what Cameron had in mind.

"Okay, seriously, what is it? I didn't stick my nose in it yesterday because I figured it was none of my business, but now I can see that whatever they took from you is making you a shitty partner. You can't focus, you can't aim, and foremost, you can't trust me. If you can't trust me, I can't trust you, and if I can't trust you, I'm not going to stand by your side anymore!" Thirteen yelled with her hands on her hips, scolding the woman, who suddenly looked much smaller then usual, like a mother would scold a child. "I don't care whether you like it or not anymore. I have to know so I know when to hide you somewhere behind the crates and go fight my battles on my own. I can't be protecting you all the time and obviously I can't count on you either!" _I wish I could break this pact!_

"I can't tell you…" the other woman whispered, her voice barely audible since she was clasping her hands in front of her mouth, desperately trying to look anywhere but at her partner.

"Can't tell me what? How you died or what your entry fee was? I've been there! I've seen it! You are no different than me here, except I've managed to get over myself!"

"_There is a difference!_" Cameron shouted when her patience finally reached its limit, tears threatening to fall from her eyes.

Remy didn't expect that kind of resistance and stood dumbfounded on the spot as she watched the other doctor clenching her fists. She could swear Cameron would beat her to death if she said one more wrong word. Then a terrifying thought crossed her mind. What could Dr. Allison Cameron value more than her own life? She was too well-adjusted for it to be a selfish treat but not that pious for it to be another person's own right to live. Except maybe the one closest to her. "Oh my god, did they—Did they take Chase?" She didn't know the details of the relationship, but she was certain the two were involved in something more than casual dating, and that the blond Australian played a big part in Cameron's life. It made perfect sense, and it made her sick.

Cameron opened her mouth a couple of times to say something, but then closed it again, getting herself to calm down. "No," was the only response Thirteen would get.

The staring contest they were having was interrupted by a sound notifying them of a new text message.

_"Mission 3: Free the tiger. You have three hours. Fail, and face erasure. _–_ The Reapers"_

"We've got to go," Allison murmured and moved to sneak past Thirteen. However, she was stopped by an arm pushing her back by the shoulders.

"No. We're not going anywhere until you tell me what the hell is wrong with you," came the younger woman's menacing words.

"Time is running out," the blonde remarked, urging Thirteen to let go.

"I was always ready to forfeit my chance at life. The question is, are you?"

Whenever things got serious, she would risk it all, consequences be damned. It's just another game, just another set of rules, just another chance to win, and if she doesn't, who cares? She's dead either way. Her jeopardizing all she's ever had was but a sign that some kind of feelings was involved and she had taken chances twice during the previous two days. Struggling to maintain an unreadable expression, Remy could only hope she would prevail like she did most of the time. For someone so unlucky at life, she was extraordinarily lucky at gambling.

It didn't take much for Cameron to break. In fact, it only took this. "I killed myself. Now move so we can do our job," she growled as she walked past the frowning brunette.

At first, it seemed like a reasonable explanation; why Cameron didn't put her heart into the fight, almost like she didn't want to survive, and why she was always reluctant to cooperate. On second thought, this would have defied the basics of the Reaper's game. Why would Cameron have chosen to accept the offer of rebirth in the first place? Luckily, Thirteen had been a fan of CSI; Las Vegas in particular, thanks to the cute brunette and the awfully human Morpheus. _What happens in Vegas can also happen in Princeton._ "Really? Why?" she asked suspiciously, narrowing her eyes at the other woman.

Cameron shot her a look. She was getting mildly annoyed at Thirteen's continuous questions swarming from the gates of hell, but she would have to provide an answer to all of them sooner or later. "Because life isn't worth it."

"How?"

"OD'd."

"Did you leave a letter?"

"Yes."

"What did it say?"

"That I was sorry and that I didn't blame Chase for what had happened."

"What had happened?"

"We broke up."

"Strange, because I can recall a pretty convincing visual of you two smooching in the parking lot the night I died in great detail."

"It happened when we got home."

"So when did you do it?"

"A week ago."

Bingo! Bombarding interrogation never fails. "The game began three days ago. I got here immediately after my death. Even if, hypothetically, a few days were to pass with us in some sort of limbo until there were enough Players involved – which I suppose would be logical – neither of us would remember, which means you cannot possibly say for sure when you died, or that every clue pointing to the fact that it's been three days is wrong. Either you know more than you say, or besides being a lousy partner, you're also a lousy liar."

"What happened to 'trust your partner'?" The blonde let out a heavy sigh. "Look, if I'm so secretive about it… would you really want to know?"

Thirteen rubbed her eyes and shook her head. Cameron had a point. Either the cause of her death was something so horrendous that Remy would uncover some sort of conspiracy against the United States in whatever she had done and would regret finding out, or it was something so painful that barely knowing Remy had gotten it out of her would make Cameron hurt beyond imagining and Thirteen regret finding out still. As significant as the role of curiosity was in this play, it had been upstaged. She ran a hand through her hair. "Can you promise me that relying on you won't be the kind of decision that would stab me in the back later?"

The other doctor thought her answer through, but it was really just her indecision about how to put it delicately. The only thing certain was that she was not going to lie about this. "I'm sorry. I'm not doing it on purpose. I just feel…" She fumbled with her fingers, trying to get her brain to let her explain the situation preferably in a way that wouldn't sound as if the entire hospital had failed to notice Cameron's growing need for a dose of Rohypnol. "Empty. To tell you the truth, I don't know what they took from me, but something is missing and I know it was important and I just feel like I can't go on without it and I know it's stupid because I should know what the most important thing in the world is to me, everyone should know—"

"Cameron," Thirteen attempted to stop the other woman's haphazard rambling accompanied by a number of wild gestures.

"What?" Allison stopped and got back to solid ground.

Prior to this moment, Cameron had only been a sad pile of dead puppies to Thirteen, but she had been mistaken. She wasn't guilt-ridden because of her inability to focus, she was unable to focus because she was guilt-ridden, plagued by the constant reminders of the loss she couldn't quite put her finger on. _Everyone should know…_

This was where a decent individual would say something profound and meaningful, perhaps quoting Freud or Shakespeare or Wilde in the process, and make the broken person realize that the world wasn't ending and that they had people who cared about them and that unless your life is in danger, all your troubles are insignificant. But the world might as well have been ending, they only had one another to pick up the pieces and their life was very much threatened. Cameron couldn't fight to save her life and Thirteen couldn't help her to save them both. She started to feel sorry for the other woman. Why, why did someone like Allison Cameron have to end up with possibly the only partner that couldn't give her what she needed because she didn't have it herself and she didn't know how to obtain it? What could she say? What was the right thing to do? How could they make it through? So many questions, zero answers, and to her it seemed someone had forgotten to print out an extra copy of 'Social Relations and How to Adapt to Them' when she was born. Her own obligation – or need – to compensate for the void space in the blonde's heart made it all the more difficult. It doesn't work if you actually care.

So she did the only thing she knew, the only thing that made sense. It wouldn't make anything better. It might make things worse. For Remy Hadley, however, almost any risk was worth taking.

The simplest of things, so much easier than convincing in words, yet it means so much more. Almost like another language, understandable by every being possessing emotions, but there could never be a set definition for it.

Slowly, hesitantly, as if waiting for approval – from herself as well as Cameron – she pulled Allison into an embrace. The easy way out, but also the most comforting. Everyone should know. "Come here. It's okay." She relaxed when she felt the blonde bury her head in Remy's shoulder. "I don't know either."

So ridiculously many lies and so much avoiding over the plain cruel truth that they knew nothing about the world – and one another – until there was no time left to find out.

"You have every right to blame me, but I'll do my best not to let it happen again. I promise," Allison murmured into the fabric of her jacket.

Thirteen smiled to herself as she gently caressed her companion's back. Baby steps. "I'm sure about that."

"Though I'd prefer it if you refrained from attempting to fry things in the near future."

She grinned and drew away from the smaller woman. "Okay, no thunderbolts unless completely necessary from now on."

Allison looked up at her with uncertainty. "Pinky promise?"

Remy rolled her eyes. "Fine. It's a pinky promise," she said, intertwining her pinky with the blonde's nonchalantly. "Now come on, we'll figure this out later. There's still a mission for us to complete."

Perhaps this week was not a complete train wreck.

* * *

><p>Except there was still a tiny issue that cried for attention. "So what do we do?"<p>

They had left the Community Park they had – once again – appeared in (deeming the place some sort of 'default respawn spot' for the pair) and marched on into the heart of the city down Leigh Avenue. Cameron groaned in annoyance when she scented the sweet smell of seafood and carne asada coming from behind the peculiar, almost a little inappropriate green front wall separating the cozy interior of Tortuga's Mexican Village from the rest of the world. "I normally don't do Mexican, but I'd kill for some of that right now just to remember what it was like to eat."

"Uh-hum," Thriteen nodded. "Stop thinking of salsa and focus on the problem! Free the tiger, free the tiger… Last time I checked there were no zoos in Princeton."

"Unless we've slept through a couple of years and they built one in the meantime."

Remy lowered her head looked up at Allison from under her eyebrows. "Seriously?"

"It's a theory, though a bad one," the blonde replied with a shrug.

"Let's just not go with that. What else do we have?"

"The tiger is the symbol of Princeton, but that makes no sense either. Free the city? What from?" Cameron wondered aloud and then stopped abruptly, staring into the distance.

"What is it?" the baffled Thirteen asked, waving a hand in front of the other woman's face.

She looked the way Cameron was staring to determine the cause of her sudden lack of movement. Her eyes glimpsed the vague outline of trees lined up to the side of the road, a group of children chasing a ball, and the bold letters 'University Medical Center' at the end of the street. "Cameron, this isn't our hospital," she said quietly and put a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

The blonde shook her head and resumed her pace. "I know. I just never thought I would miss the rat-race of my job so much."

"I hear ya." Thirteen sighed and rubbed her eyes. "I hate riddles in which I have no possible answers to choose from! Maybe they mean tiger in a metaphorical sense? Such as – such as – a miserable loner with a limp we need to hit in the head with an anvil?"

The two shared a sympathetic look.

"I think I've got it!" Allison exclaimed suddenly as they reached the crossroad in front of the medical center. "Here's a riddle for you:

_Although Yale has always favored _

_The violet's dark hue, _

_And the many sons of Harvard_

_To the crimson rose are true,_

_We will own the lilies slender, _

_Nor honor shall they lack, _

_While the tiger stands defender_

_Of the Orange and the Black."_

Remy smacked her forehead. "Tigers guard the university! But which one? There might be dozens of tiger statues and sculptures around the campus."

Her companion smirked in victory. "You said it yourself; some of them _guard_ the university – the Nassau hall's couple. They're the iconic pair. Don't you think they deserve to get some rest after a hundred years?"

"I think I'm beginning to understand what they all see in you. Let's go!"

As Remy took the right turn and ran down the crowded Witherspoon Street not waiting for her partner to catch up, she missed the sad frown that appeared on the blonde's face momentarily before she, too, took off.

_2:19._

* * *

><p>Dressed in a light coat of snow, the tigers of Nassau stood still, patiently awaiting the next challengers under the dim light of the clouded sun, their backs illuminated by two old lanterns, each to accompany one of the guardians on their duty.<p>

"No students," Thirteen remarked as the two women passed through the ornate iron gate onto the campus grounds. The daunting tingling in their backs suggested that the two stone eagles watching over the entrance had their void eyes set firmly on them, as did the leafless oaks, but that was impossible. Or was it?

Cameron shivered, but it would be naïve of anyone to blame the cold. "So?"

"Less people, more Noise," the brunette replied. "We're heading the right direction."

"Cheerful," Allison mumbled under her breath.

The gate laughed a creaking laugh as it shut its jaws. The two doctors swiftly turned around just to see the eagles grinning at them with their wings spread halfway. Weren't they facing the other way a minute ago?

"I have a bad feeling about this," Cameron whispered. "Let's get out of here."

"Couldn't agree more."

So they ran, through grass and sand roads and the ragged coat of snow, around the many reneissance windows of all the different halls. Clusters of climbing ivies protected the slumbering buildings from the awakening's winter's breath and giggled mischievously at their visitors. Gradually, trees became bricks and roads became streets, like an ancient city within a city. Their goal was set, marked by the bell tower soaring overhead, still standing in all its glory since times long past.

_1:49._

At last, the two Players reached the gauntlet. However, aside from the ravens and the lamps and the two tigers, there was another observer. Cameron stumbled over to a dark hooded figure sitting on the ground and leaning on the side of the first tiger.

"Son of a bitch…" a low voice muttered.

"What happened?" Thirteen asked, watching as her partner kneeled next to the boy and took off his hood to examine the cuts on his neck and chest, revealing pale blond hair. _The one from yesterday._

The boy coughed blood. "They erased my partner. I don't have much time before—"

"Who did? There's no one here! Who erased you? I can heal you!" Allison went through her pockets desperately trying to find the right badge, but her efforts were in vain.

There was a husky smirk. "'Cause I've lost my partner, there's nothing you can do. Kick 'em good for us and beware of the fire, will you?"

"What do you mean 'beware of the fire'? Wait! Come back!"

A ray of blinding white light later, the pair was once again left alone in the middle of the abandoned battlefield. Cameron looked up at her companion, clearly frightened. _We're next._

"Maybe we should try using the Player pin to see if we hear anything around the tigers, because this place is deserted," Remy suggested.

The ER head nodded. "Ready?"

"Never."

…

…

_We're so scewed, we're so screwed…_

_Cameron, you're not helping._

_Eh, I'm sorry! Wait, you can hear me? _

_Apparently. Woohoo, it's like an afterlife transceiver. Falcon to stork, falcon to stork, do you read me?_

_Shut up and listen! Can't you be serious for a while?_

_I would, but that would make it harder to have fun._

_Hear anything?_

_Just the few birds and the wind and your subconscious being pissed at me for calling you a stork._

_Listen not just to the sounds, listen to what's behind the sounds. And I'm not offended; storks are noble creatures, just so you know._

_Hear the tiger roar_

_Rolling up a score_

_Better move along _

_When you hear the tiger sing his jungle song._

_Okay Cameron, that is not __a reasonable form of revenge._

_You mean that wasn't you?_

_I want your soul!_

_WAKE UP!_

Thirteen gasped for breath and fell to her knees. The icy air felt like needles in her throat, but that was the least of her troubles. _Cameron!_ She looked about frantically, but her partner was nowhere to be found. _No, no way! They couldn't have gotten her that fast! _"Cameron? Cameron!"

"I could use some help over here!"

She never thought would ever feel such relief at hearing the older doctor's voice. She turned around to see Cameron building a barricade across the road using her psychic powers with everything ranging from carefully positioned poles to benches and lamps. "Skeletons."

"As in bones moving by themselves with axes to chop our heads off?"

"Do you want to see for yourself? Help me!"

"I don't know how! I'm the damage dealer here!" There was a low growl. Thirteen froze in place as she looked over her shoulder. "We have another problem."

It could have been a sight to behold if it didn't make the Players' hearts sink even deeper. A dark cloud started to form itself above the twin statues. There was no need to rush now that the way out had been sealed by the prey itself. As it waited for the snow floating down to cover the scene, turn black and melt with the smoke, it got thicker and thicker until the adjacent lanterns faded into the night in the middle of the day. Then blueish, bone-like sticks began to emerge from the cloud, one by one, as if walking forward. First, pointy little nubs got together with a dozen of other bones, joined by a tibia, a joint, all the way up to the spine. Vertebrae ran up and down the skeleton and past it to form a whip-like tail. When two almost complete creatures were ready to jump out onto solid ground, at last skulls settled themselves at the top, revealing rows of brassy fangs.

"Tigers look much more magnificent when they have flesh. You hold the barrier, I'll take these two out," Thirteen stated.

These Noise were patient and persistent, capable of biding their time until their prey made a single fatal mistake, a single wrong look or step. Each walked to one side of Thirteen and glared at her with the bright red orbs that substituted eyes. _They're trying to separate us._ She was having none of that, though, and backed away to her slightly more alive companion. She noticed the blonde shooting a nervous look in her general direction. "Don't worry; I've got your back."

Without slowing down, but without speeding up or increasing their pace, the two bone tigers leapt simultaneously at the brunette, hoping to catch her unprepared. She quickly ducked out of the way and slashed the air above with the spirit sword already out and ready in her hand. When she heard the leg bone cracking, she knew she had hit the mark. She spun around and saw one of the beasts growling (how, she had no idea) sprawled on the ground, its hind leg decorated by a fence of thorns where its femur should have been, and the other tiger aiming steadily for her unsuspecting partner. Before she could even warn Cameron, the creature found itself wrapped in the cruel embrace of a barbed wire. "Good one!"

"Finish it off; they're getting through."

While Thirteen had her hands full trying to end the two cubs' suffering, the ground shook. Glass fell out of the pile and shattered to pieces, here and there, gradually increasing in frequency. Cameron was too exhausted to repair the holes; her breathing was quick and labored and every inch of her body felt as if it were never able to move again. The pins had taken most of the remaining energy she had. "You're the damage dealer," she huffed out quietly before collapsing to the ground.

Snow. She could feel it under her fingertips, smooth like cotton. Snow. It had been there that fateful night, and now it came back for her to take her away. Was that what it meant? Was it there to claim the toll? But there was Thirteen. It would take her too. That wasn't right. She didn't deserve it. _Don't make me fight snow._

She could only hear the wall crashing to the ground as three more skeletal beasts tore it down, one larger than the others. _Mommy's home._

"Cameron!"

No. She wouldn't let it ruin everything again. No. She wouldn't blame it again.

The two smaller tigers lunged at the Players but were stopped by a point-blank shot of a wire interlocking with their ribs and therefore preventing them from further movement. With nowhere to go, the beasts' red eyes were forced to witness a surge of light bullets coming at them and cutting them to pieces.

The mother tigeress' jaws opened wide in what one would expect to be a monstrous roar, but no sound came out. Instead, a spark that could barely be seen ignited in her throat.

_Beware of the fire._

Thirteen swiftly shoved Cameron out of the way of a rather formidable fireball, but not swiftly enough to notice the monster already running at the two of them lying on the grass through the fire. Just as it was about to dig its claws into their flesh, an icicle no less than ten feet tall split it in the middle in mid-jump and a soundless thunder pierced the sky, burning the foe to a cinder.

Lifeless carcasses of the Noise dissapeared into thin air and the murder of crow spectators dispersed into the distance.

"In my defense, that was definitely necessary," Thirteen said, breathing heavily.

"Thank you," Allison whispered before falling sound asleep on the spot.

"Thank you, too," Remy repeated with a relieved smile on her face and her arm still supporting Cameron.

_0:00_

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong> All landmarks mentioned in this fanfic are purely real and I am quite proud of including them. Also, the things I've learned about Princeton while writing this fic. That town rocks. Did you know Albert Einstein lived in Princeton? *gets shot*_  
><em>


	5. W1D4 Have Faith in Your Partner

**Week 1, Day 4: Have Faith in Your Partner**

It was beginning to feel more like home, this place, its morning breeze and hoarfrost. Days were growing colder; her breath could be seen twirling into white spirals and curls. Crows and ravens still sang their perish songs when she awoke under the same old pine, sheltered by its branches and caressed by the blades of grass. It was safe here, of all places.

One thing was different today, though. Today, Thirteen woke up quite warm despite the surrounding snowless cold. Comfortable, too. She opened one eye lazily to find herself hugged firmly from the side by a certain slumbering blonde doctor whose head rested itself on Remy's shoulder.

_Damn,_ she thought. Relax, Rem. She's just cold. You're just cold. The two of you are cold. Cameron had subconsciously looked for the nearest source of warmth. It's completely natural.

She wasn't used to this. No one had gone there in years (since she would always leave in the middle of the night); it was these little signs of affection that would find themselves doubly crossed off her to-do list labeled as unacceptable. And now look at the girl, all innocent and oblivious right next to her, just like that, like the sly, cunning fox Cameron was; found a way anyway. She reminded Thirteen of kittens, how they always get all cuddly and fluffy around you and then they sleep on your face and suffocate you miaowling 'FEED ME'. Thirteen could only hope she wouldn't run away when she finally gives her a bowl of Whiskas, like cats tend to. The brunette smiled in spite of herself; that was going to be some awkward conversation when Allison wakes up. Nevertheless, until then, she could just stay right there and pretend to not have noticed. After all, she was cold too, and here, none of it mattered. None of it mattered at all.

* * *

><p>A faint whisper hung in the air, almost indistinguishable from it. "Thirteen?"<p>

"Mmh?"

"You make for a really nice pillow."

"Anytime. You're not half bad yourself for a – someone lying on me all night, either." _'Someone lying on me all night'? What the hell, Remy._

"Sorry."

Thirteen sat up and crossed her legs, an act which forced Cameron to grumble in disappointment at the loss of her cushion. The brunette yawned and stretched herself. "I feel like I've slept for a thousand years, and then some," she muttered. "I see what they did there; they want to tire us to death before the day even starts. Clever." She sighed when her phone went off. "Here we go."

"_Mission 4: Find yourselves. You have until midnight. __Hint: Imprint. Fail, and face erasure. – The Reapers"_

"What does that mean? We're right here…" Cameron grunted in annoyance.

Thirteen's eyes widened. "We are, but what we had been isn't."

The other doctor looked at her in disbelief. "You don't mean…" she trailed off and shook her head when she received a slight nod in response. "No, no, no. I'm not going back there—I am _not _digging up my—myself!"

"Calm down. We just need to _find_ ourselves; we don't need to _see_ it… For one thing, we are not physically able to _dig_ anything _up_."

"But—but how do we do that? We have to find out whether they even found us and—and what they did to… us."

"There's only one place I can think of where we can learn anything about that."

* * *

><p>Both women had wanted to see it again so desperately, although it only brought them pain at times; it was the kind of thing that you love and hate at the same time, and you hate that you love it, and you hate yourself deeply for loving it. The professor who can teach well, but not learn in the least. The desire that's killing you, but you don't want it to stop. The two worlds in one; their joining point. They stood in front of the not particularly young but well preserved house of healing and for a minute only contemplated the purpose of their presence in this god forsaken place. Neither could believe the irony of the circumstances that brought them here.<p>

"Do you think they're here?" Cameron asked, her eyes grazing the sliding door.

"House is," Remy responded matter-of-factly.

They walked through the gate.

"Nothing's changed," mused the brunette.

Indeed, Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital looked much the same; nurses were running around carrying bandages and files, little children were crying, grownups arguing, consents being signed… and in the middle of it the Dean of Medicine herself.

"Pass this memo around – Thanks – Has anybody seen House? He should have been on clinic duty three hours ago! – You, yes, you, you're in charge here until my meeting with the executives has ended – Someone clean this mess up!"

Only the brightest could spot any differences between Lisa Cuddy now and Lisa Cuddy a month prior. She still had the distinctive authoritative aura around her and was taking on her responsibilities ten at a time – with difficulty, yes, but the hospital's current state was chaotic, to say the least. However, her slightly drooping eyelids suggested lack of sleep and her low-cut top wasn't quite as dazzling as it used to be.

What did they expect to find, the whole hospital closed down? As ridiculous as the thought was, something about it seemed alluring and somehow _right_; at least that way they would know that they had mattered. But what are a missing ER head and an internist amidst a sea of white coats and black pens? At least they knew Cuddy hadn't found anyone to fully replace Cameron yet. Er, which was bad.

But then the waves of nurses slowed down, not quite hitting the shore with such force. Voices grew deeper and deeper and papers flew slower and slower like falling feathers of a blue Macaw soaring over the sea. Cameron and Thirteen found themselves the only moving beings in a world where time had stopped.

"We meet again, ladies!" the familiar tingling voice echoed through the lobby.

The two doctors looked around for its source, but saw nothing except for the hospital's current inhabitants frozen in the middle of a move. "Why don't you show yourself? I'd like to see the face of the one I'm talking to," Remy called out.

The blond boy appeared in front of them in a puff of white smoke. _Well hello there, David Copperfield._ "Please, I'm a _real_ magician." Thirteen blinked in confusion. Did he just listen to her thoughts? "Have you even read today's hint?"

Oh, right, that. _'Hint: Imprint.'_ "We… were getting there."

The boy chuckled. "Say, how about we play a little minigame outside of the main game? I'll give you a riddle; if you tell me the right answer, I'll tell you about impriting, which, believe me, is crucial to your progress on this day." _But…_ "Of course, if you guess wrong, I'll be forced to erase you both." _Of course._

"And if we refuse to guess?" Cameron asked.

Joshua shrugged. "Then I'll just wait until you realize there's no other way to solve today's mission. Think about it." With that, he vanished again, and people resumed whatever they had been doing as if nothing had happened.

"Don't let him get to you. We'll find a way," Thirteen reassured her partner.

* * *

><p>The whiteboard said the following: fever, muscle pain, light sensitivity, kidney damage. Those were the only words, visible or audible, in the room next to House's office where diagnoses were usually discussed. They had to keep themselves from thinking of the possible diseases; they had enough of their own problems now. All the diagnosticians were absent, probably running some tests. As expected in such cases, one person stayed in the office next door, a bottle of Vicodin standing on his table and a red and gray tennis ball in his hand when he caught it bouncing off the wall and threw it again. Catch. Throw. Catch. Throw.<p>

His two former employees observed from behind the glass as another familiar brown-haired figure walked through the door and put his hands on his hips in a scolding manner. "House, the Board is waiting for you."

"Anything I'd say, Cuddy can say better. Also, even if she screws up, people will care less since she has breasts. I'd say this is a win-win situation. Unless you want me to have a plastic surgery and ignore the case, which would be great, but I don't really think I'm up to—"

"Get over yourself already!" the oncologist exclaimed. "We all miss them, but some of us understand that there's still work to be done and the world is not going to wait for us to stop mourning."

"Yeah, like you dealt with Amber's death oh-so-well, except now there's two of them and more important to the hospital."

Uh oh, low blow. Thirteen and Cameron stared helplessly at Wilson, who clenched his fists and without a warning punched his so-called friend in the face. Fortunately for him, House managed to stay in his seat. The ball rolled away into the corner and hid from the scene.

"You try to get rid of your pain by forwarding it to others like you always do. But you know, it doesn't work like that. I'm not going to be here to be your dummy. We all have to deal with the loss ourselves. If you can't, that's your problem and your responsibility, not mine. Call me when you're sober," Wilson said, hyperventilating and slightly flushed, before storming out of the office.

_So much for that,_ Thirteen thought.

"This place is a mess," Allison whimpered, covering her mouth with her hand. "Now Wilson's in twice the pain because we—" her breathing hitched, "—died."

"No, Wilson is in twice the pain because House is an ass," Remy clarified. "What just happened has nothing to do with us. This was his ego and absolute lack of tact saying hi."

"What now? They're not going to talk about us and we don't even know where the rest of your team is." It felt strange to combine the word 'your' with 'team' in a sentence. But that was the way it was.

"We wait until someone comes back," Thirteen stated and sat in the chair she would normally be sitting in at this time of day had she been alive.

"That could take hours," Cameron mumbled and took a seat next to her. "Shouldn't we just call Joshua?"

Remy's jaw dropped a little. "You're _considering_ it? Some stupid riddle which is probably a set-up to erase us faster?"

"If we wait until they come back and if that happens, say, in the evening, and we still have no idea where we are, we'll have to call him eventually. And if we do so too late, knowing won't help us anymore. Time doesn't stop just because we're dead." _Much the opposite,_ she added in her mind.

"So you'd rather take the leap of faith?"

"That's what I thought you would do too."

"Huh." As much as she hated to admit it, the blonde had a point. Besides, Joshua had helped them before. Although he was creepy, he didn't necessarily seem _bad_, did he?

Or they could wander aimlessly around the hospital in search for anyone who would randomly talk about what happened to their bodies.

Yeah, Cameron had a point.

"Fine. Airhead, we give up!"

"I don't think insulting an ethereal being is such a good idea," Cameron whispered in her ear, at which the brunette rolled her eyes.

It only took the boy a few seconds before he appeared sitting on the conference table. "Smart move," he said with a smug grin. "Now, do you want to hear the riddle? There's no turning back when you do." The two women looked each other in the eyes before nodding hesitantly. _We used to solve riddles here every day._ "Good. Listen, then: I can haunt you day and night until you understand what's right. But the harm is not in me, no; it's my user who hurts you so. I come in many sizes and shapes, but we all meet the same end. If you get close enough to take off our capes, then to other pressing matters you'll be free to tend. I am the tool of deciding your fate; you'd better hurry or else you'll be late. What am I? Be careful, you only have one guess."

_Haunt us day and night until we understand… All meet the same end… People? No… Take off our capes… Uncover something? The tool of deciding our fate… We'd better hurry or else we'll be late… and perish._

"Thirteen," the blonde said and waited for the other doctor to look at her. "I know."

"Are you sure?" the internist asked with uncertainty.

"I know it," Allison repeated.

Remy took a deep breath. _Trust your partner._ "Okay, go on."

Cameron bit her lip and looked Joshua in the eye. "A riddle. The answer is a riddle. Your riddle."

Thirteen shut her eyes almost involuntarily.

A tinging laugh resonated in her head. "Very good, as expected of you. You pass."

She stared at him wide-eyed. "Cameron, I owe you dinner." Due to her still listening to check if her hearbeat was there, she didn't notice the blonde blushing.

"Now I will explain how imprinting works. Imprinting is the act of planting a thought in the mind of a person in the RG using your Player pin; some word or image that will make them act on it. Of course, it doesn't always work. You either need to be very persistent or choose someone weak of will."

"And how exactly is that supposed to help us?" Thirteen asked, bemused.

"You know what you need to find, no?" The boy let out one last tingling laugh before disappearing into thin air.

"Great, now we need to find someone 'weak of will'. Something tells me we won't have much luck with House."

"Wait, let me try it on him first," Cameron said as she stood up and walked closer to the glass separating the two rooms. The diagnostician was again bouncing his ball against a wall.

Thirteen joined her companion. "What do you want to imprint on him?"

"Wait and see." Cameron closed her eyes and pressed the black pin to her chest. Not five seconds later, House caught the ball but didn't throw it again. Instead he stared through the glass, stared right through them. It gave Thirteen the creeps.

"What did you do?"

The blonde giggled. "It could be lupus," she said, pointing at the whiteboard.

Remy raised her chin and crossed her arms over her chest in an 'aah, I see' manner. "I just hope that's not how he gets all his epiphanies."

* * *

><p>After hours of trying to find <em>any<em> of their coworkers throughout the hospital, the two finally stumbled upon two of them in a locker room when their shift had ended. Chris Taub and Lawrence Kutner were changing from their work attires without saying a single word. Nothing important could be said, anyway.

"Okay. Let's start with you," Thirteen suggested.

"No, wait!" Cameron yelled, but her partner was already lost in the realm of thoughts.

_Cameron's death. Cameron's death. Cameron's death._

"Did you know Dr. Cameron?" Kutner asked and hang his coat on a hanger.

"No better than you did. She seemed nice for someone who had worked under House for so long, though. A mad accomplishment, if you ask me, and also a bit suspicious."

"I know; that's what's bothering me. The one who killed her must have held one hell of a grudge. They say he or she didn't even take anything from her, so I suppose it was personal. Who would murder such an outgoing woman, though?" Kutner frowned, examining a stain on his shirt but not really paying any attention to it.

"Leave speculations to the cops. We'll know more after the autopsy."

_Murder? Autopsy?_ Thirteen stared speechless at their colleagues and then back at Cameron, who was covering her mouth with her hands and sobbing vigorously. "I told you not to!" she shouted angrily in between sobs.

"Cameron, I'm not going to ask you anything, but whether you like it or not, we need to find you. Now at least we know where to look," the brunette tried to calm her down and raised her arms in a gesture that policemen would perceive as a sign that she posed no threat. "You don't need to explain anything. Look, I'll do the same."

_Thirteen's death. Thirteen's death. Thirteen's death._

"I'm sorry for bringing it up again, and I know it's only been a few days, but… what do you say we visit her grave, pay our respects?" Taub suggested and looked at his friend expectantly.

"Sure. It's not like I'm going to do anything besides eating cereal when I get home." He shrugged. "I miss her. We would have already solved the case if she were here. And had a good laugh or two. And House would have someone to sexually harass."

The short man let out a humorless laugh. "Yeah, I bet she's already banging her head against the golden gates of heaven at how stupid we are."

_No, I'm not._

He blinked in confusion and mumbled: "Well that was weird."

"What?"

"Nothing, I'm just growing senile. Let's go."

* * *

><p><em>Remy Beauregard '13' Hadley<em>

_2/16/1985 – 12/5/2010 _

_Beloved daughter of Anne and John Hadley_

"It's kind of strange that they even wrote the number on her tombstone."

"It was part of her, don't you think?" Kutner kneeled on the grass and recited a short prayer in Hebrew. "Unless she wasn't as fond of the nickname as she pretended to be, in which case I'm sorry."

"They are good men," Allison whispered solemnly as she stood by the grave. It felt just like visiting a real grave of a loved one, and it was real, even though the one who was supposed to be six feet under ground was standing right next to her, watching in silent agony what could have possibly been her only friends as they said their goodbyes and left, for it was getting late.

It was Remy's turn to kneel. "I'm here?" she half-asked and trailed her fingers over her name on the stone. Her stomach did a little backflip at the sight.

Just as everything was going dark, she felt a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry," Cameron's soothing voice said behind her.

But it was still going dark. She looked at her hands and could see the dirt underneath. "What's happening?" More and more of her disappeared and the world kept spinning and the last thing she saw was the panicked face of Allison Cameron.

* * *

><p>"Send me back there <em>right now<em>!"

She was rightfully enraged, having been so rudely snatched away from her resting place. It was just like that time – the pool table, the aquarium, and the Moorish idols. Joshua's little residence.

"That is impossible; you no longer have any purpose in today's game. Your part of the mission has been completed."

Thirteen grabbed the boy by the shirt. _"But she can't fight the Noise on her own! _That's not fair!"

Joshua's cold gaze pierced her through. "Then you'd better hope she doesn't _accidentally run into any_."

The brunette shoved him away, clenched her fists and roared in rage. _Who the hell makes these rules?_

* * *

><p>"Thirteen! Thirteen! Where are you?" She had been wandering around the cemetery for a fair while now. With every passing minute, she felt as if she were falling more into perdition, until she fell to her knees and broke into tears. "Remy, where are you," she whimpered. But Remy had left her. She was alone with nowhere to go and everywhere to die. "I don't want to die yet," she whispered.<p>

_Cameron…_

What was that voice? Probably just the wind howling among the trees.

_Cameron, get the hell up!_

Or not. God bless afterlife transceivers.

_Thirteen?__ Where are you?_

_I'__m with the airhead. It's okay. You just need to keep going. Something about my part being done. They're idiots. I'm still here._

_But I can't do anything on my own here!_

_You can! Just think positive and go find yourself. Stay close to people and imagine I'm your pillow, or a rainbow or something. The sun is setting. I believe in you, alright?_

_Do you?_

_Yes. Now pull yourself together and run!_

Of course. What was she thinking? Remy relied on her; that was good enough reason to try and finish the race in time. And she would. Run, run and never look back, for both of them.

* * *

><p>Thankfully, the Princeton CSI headquarters wasn't too large a facility. As she walked through the dark corridors in search of the dissecting room, she prayed to every god possible that she wouldn't walk in on a forensic pathologist performing autopsy on—her. The very idea made her dizzy. It couldn't get much more wrong than that. <em>I'm alive. I'm alive. I'm alive.<em>

The label beside the door spoke clearly. _#307 – Dissecting Room._ Cameron gulped down the lump in her throat.

_I'm here._

_Go on. It will be over soon._

She took a deep breath and walked through the door.

There was no one inside, except for the droplights and the lingering putrid smell. The only things decorating the room were rows of metal tables around the walls with various kinds of scalpels, syringes, scissors and pincers and knives as small as a needle or as big as a forearm. Her heart skipped a beat when she saw an open body one of the tables in the middle, but then she let out a sigh of relief when she realized it wasn't hers but instead belonged to an unfortunate stabbing victim.

_I don't want to see this!_

_Calm down. Breathe. Don't look at the others, just find yourself. It's just a few more steps._

Cameron's eyes met the second table, on which lied another motionless body covered by a white sheet. She walked over to it, breathing heavily. Her trembling hand reached out for the cloth. Missions be damned, right now she only wanted her corpse to _not_ be here. _"And I guess being the poor guy dying is the toughest of all?" – "No. It's easier to die than to watch someone die."_ Four years had passed since this conversation had happened. But now it was her watching herself die little by little. Foreman had been right. Dying was unbearable.

She yanked the sheet off the person's face and was met with her exact reflection. Blonde hair lay spread on the silvery metal and usually rose red lips were now a pale shade of blue. Surprisingly enough, the reflection seemed much more peaceful than its template, as if she were only asleep and dreaming of a beautiful land, her face resembling a fragile porcelain doll.

The illusion shattered. Cameron leapt away from the table, tripped over her own foot and backed away, crawling into the corner and shaking uncontrollably. _I'm still alive! I'm still alive! I'm still alive! I'm still alive! I'm still—I'm—still—I—Remy—_

_We are still alive!_

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong> Tron reference in this chapter! If you haven't already noticed that I'm a complete reference _nut_ (there were definitely more in this chapter…), I dare you to find it.

Man, writing this was intense. My heart rate skyrocketed somewhere during the last page. Also, I miss season1!Cameron. So much. (The character development here: "I love everyone" - "Bitch please" - "I'm surrounded by idiots." Bravo, writers.)


	6. W1D5 Listen to Your Partner

**Author's Note:** Before I start off with the chapter I have been looking forward to writing for _ages_, (and still failed but I no longer care) I have a serious proposal to make. You see, due to some strange, heinous trickery, I ended up promising to dedicate this chapter to one of my classmates in order to get my chemistry notebook back. Now she won't stop nagging me about it unless I either do this or give her one of the tiger skeletons from the previous chapter, and those are MINE. _Takže Evo, tohle je pro tebe ;) S láskou, Juliana.~_

* * *

><p><strong>Week 1, Day 5<strong>**: Listen to Your Partner**

"**Hope will never be silent." – Harvey Milk**

Shadows. There was an endless eternity of dark shadows with no face or voice to go with them. She was dancing with one of them, dancing in the bottomless abyss of hollow memory.

_Where are you, Allison?_

She looked around. There was no visible source of light, yet she stood out in the black desert of shadows, out of which none belonged to her.

_What do you want, Allison?_

Wherever her feet stepped, they would always find solid ground when they wanted to. Whenever she closed her eyes, she would only see the same scene again. And again. And again.

_Why do you live, Allison?_

She and her partner moved simultaneously in perfect harmony; like one body, like one soul. What did it matter that she couldn't see their face if they understood one another so well?

_Who are you, Allison?_

Light illuminated the one who had led her through the melody of the tango of death, and she could see her guide – her mentor – herself; the pale blue servant of darkness that was inside her but not at the same time. The shadow's cold, lifeless lips curled into an evil smile as she gripped Allison's wrists tightly.

_Where will you go, Allison?_

All the other shadows dispersed. Only now did she see they were standing at the edge of a cliff and the bare back revealed by her dress was being whipped by the stormy wind. Her reflection, still grinning, was wearing the same dress, only in black, which contrasted with its almost snow white skin. Black roses decorated the dresse's hem and the absence of shoulder-straps drew attention to its pronounced collarbones.

It kissed her forehead lightly, as if in apology, and shoved her off the edge.

_Wake up, Allison!_

Her eyes snapped open and the phantom was replaced by the sight of her partner above her with a worried look on her face. Thirteen was there. Thirteen was still alive. No shadows, just red lights. Cameron immediately sprang up and threw her arms around the younger doctor's neck.

"It was just a dream," the brunette tried to reassure her, caressing her hair.

"It's—she was—_I_ was—"Allison whimpered with a shaking voice.

"I know, I know. But it's gone. You'll never see it again." The sobbing mess of a person held onto her for dear life as if Remy was an image of the last breath she would ever take. Cameron was losing it and there was no wonder; Thirteen doubted she would be any different in the same situation, but luckily for both of them, she didn't need to face the same horrors. Someone needed to stay sane in this twisted labyrinth much more lethal for the dead than it was for the living. _Just please stay with me. _She growled and muttered several well-aimed curses under her breath. If only _he_ hadn't taken her away, she could have helped. What kind of animals were these people? No one should ever have to go through that, let alone all by themselves. Then if—_when_ they got home, Cameron would be scared to look in the mirror for the rest of the life she fought so hard to achieve although she already deserved it and, unlike her, had a use for it. _Don't go there, not now. There will be time enough later, after you've protected her. If nothing else, you can do that. If nothing else, you can change her._

"I'm sorry," came the broken whisper.

"What are you sorry for?" _…This time?_

"I'm not exactly making it easier for you, am I?"

"Stop apologizing for everything. It's understandable. It's a lot to take on."

"I'm scared."

"I know."

How easy it would have been to just give up. Sit down under the lone pine and wait until they either freeze to death or die at the hands of those wandering, soulless creations. Maybe they would become one of them and would care no more. They'd grow numb and blind and deaf to all this madness.

But that wasn't an option for Remy. Or for Allison.

The phone rang in her pocket. _They also have absolutely no sense of tact whatso-bloody-ever._ Cameron reluctatly let go of her and let her check the message.

"_Mission 5: Survive the day. Fail, and face erasure. – The Reapers"_

Thirteen looked at her watch. The minute hand pointed at the number 11 and the shorter lazily strolled a few millimeters before. _11:55. So we're going to play cat and mouse for the next twelve hours._

Allison watched her worriedly. "What does it say?" she asked when she saw the discontent expression on her partner's face.

"Nothing good."

* * *

><p>"We'll hide here for the time being."<p>

They had wandered through the park and stumbled upon a playground encircled by trees; although this refuge was a relatively small area in the middle of the city, the trees were thick enough to shield them from many possible spectators. However, their main concern were the people; as long as they were there, it meant the Noise weren't approaching. At the moment, there were many gleeful children running around and playing tag, almost bringing a smile to the women's faces. They had found a small hill nearby and at the bottom of it a fallen trunk surrounded by pines and firs connected by white veils of cobwebs. The sky could barely be seen through clusters of needles, forming almost a cave-like structure on the surface that offered a good view of the playground.

"Not too comfy, but at least here it doesn't seem like we have a sign that says 'kill me' on our backs."

Cameron barely nodded and sat on the thorny ground. She pulled her knees to her chest, resting her chin on them, and closed her eyes.

Thirteen noticed the subtle shiver Cameron tried to conceal. _We need heat._ "Stay close; I'll keep it burning," she said, pointing at the small neon-blue fireball floating in the air in the middle of their so-called camp. It didn't take too much effort to maintain. She sat down next to her companion and reached out towards the fire.

"Thank you."

"We have a lot of free time. Do you want to talk about it?" Surely a few days ago, she would have considered Cameron's troubles none of her business, let alone a petty thing like nightmares. Almost dying changes nothing; dying changes everything.

"Fire is beautiful. It doesn't know fear but evokes it wherever it goes," the blonde replied, gazing into the flames, but her mind was elsewhere. The hopping reflection of the fire filled her emotionless eyes instead. _Suits you well._

_I suppose that's a no._

"Every time I close my eyes, I see _her_, and I know that that's all I am now." Allison let out a heavy sigh and averted her eyes to the ground.

"Don't compare yourself to her. She's not an important part of you anymore. She has no soul. I can't tell you who you are; I don't know. I don't know how the game has changed you or what you are like in real life; that's up to you to decide. What I _think_ I know is that you're a beautiful, incredibly intelligent, strong woman who still manages to maintain a deep sense of empathy. It's quite amazing for someone who's been under House's direct influence for so long, you know. I definitely know that you're not going to give up, and neither did she."

"You're wrong. She did," Cameron whispered almost inaudibly.

Thirteen frowned and turned to face her companion. "What do you mean?"

Cameron did the same. "Do you want to hear the whole story?"

The brunette gave her a slight nod in response. Even the fire started crackling more quietly as it patiently waited for her to speak up, its curious tails running around in circles.

"I had had a rough day. I needed to get some fresh air, so I went for a walk at night. I was walking through the park when I saw a stranger threatening a homeless man with a gun. I didn't know what to do, so I just stood there with my mouth open, frozen in place." She let out a strained chuckle. "The only thing I could think of was why in the world would he pick someone who had nothing more to give or lose. Or was he going to murder the man because no one would miss him? It made no sense. Then he looked at me, as if he knew I was standing there all along, and he smiled, and he pointed the gun at me. And at that moment, I turned around and ran for my life. I was never a good runner, as you can see."

Thirteen hugged her knees. She still didn't understand. "But why would you be so secretive about that? I got killed too, you know. As you said, we're both just plain dead."

"No, _you_ were killed. I was murdered. There's a difference. But that's beside the point; the point is that I ran. The one time I got the opportunity to make a difference and I ran."

"So you're feeling guilty because you forgot your Wonder Cameron suit in the closet, because you didn't pull some kind of valiant self-sacrificing act on the spot?" The blonde shook her head with a sigh. It sounded borderline stupid when she put it like that. Any reason would. "Cameron, it was a completely natural human reaction to danger. You didn't know that man. You had a home to return to, people to lose. You make a difference every day by jumping into those scrubs and saving lives. You sometimes screw up at work, why is it such a big deal outside?"

"Because even though I would always tell myself that I'm not just a sheep for slaughter, I am."

Cameron just was one of those people. The kind who is always ready for everything, always right on time, never forgets to prepare everything down to a T. The kind of person who spends more time thinking about where they've screwed up with others than about their accomplishments; the kind who is absolutely _sure_ she would never freeze and subject to fear when another person is in danger until it happens. Life isn't like movies and books. In life, it's to each their own. In life, you run the hell away when there's a gun pointed at your forehead. Herculean strength has died out eons ago.

"You don't always need to be the hero, Dr. Cameron. If you spend all the time saving others, who will be there to save you?" _Me?_ The possibility didn't seem as dreadful as it should have. In fact, it sounded rather promising, being actually needed. _For once in my life._ Thirteen looked directly into Cameron's eyes and finally knew what had been concealing the famous spark. She saw someone who was lost.

"I don't need to be saved," the blonde muttered and started poking the ground with a stick.

"No offense, but you do seem in need of a good cup of tea and a visit from Santa Claus and his elves."

"I'm dead, of course I'm miserable!" Cameron growled and threw the stick away to where it was gratefully accepted by a lively community of ants before reappearing where the blonde doctor had picked it up, much to the bugs' disappointment. "No matter what I do, this illusion keeps haunting me and I still can't picture this ending well. Playing this game is a hopeless effort to me."

_I still c__an't picture this ending well._

_Playing this game is a hopeless effort._

_It's a hopeless effort._

_A hopeless effort._

_Hopeless._

Remy sprang to attention, the gears in her head spinning with newfound momentum. She knew what Cameron's entry fee was.

* * *

><p>"<em>What's our status?"<em>

"_There are still three pairs remaining – including your proxies."_

"_They're not _my _proxies; it was you who hand-picked them."_

"_I had no intention of ever bringing the blonde into play."_

"_Are you suggesting I am to blame for her untimely death?"_

"_Of course not. Sir."_

"_Good. How are they adapting?"_

"_Some better than others. However, we still need to narrow their numbers down. I'll be issuing an attack command on the Harriers soon."_

"_I would have sent them out days ago. Nevertheless, you are young; you will learn from your mistakes."_

"_Whose side are you on?"_

"_I am a Reaper, just like you. My actions are only meant to result in the people's greater good."_

"_I came, I saw, I fell for the bait, huh."_

* * *

><p>"It's hope! They took your hope!" Thirteen was pacing around the fire, which seemed to burn brighter every time she spoke. "That's why you feel this way! The world looks grey to you because you are literally <em>unable<em> to find the strength to go on or believe in yourself," she explained, all the while making dramatic gestures. "That's what made you a great doctor; you always had hope that things would turn out for the better in the end and you spread that hope to your patients. That's why you valued it so much. It helped you save lives. It allowed you to fight against all odds. Now that it's gone, you no longer feel the need to. That's not you!" Cameron stared at her wide-eyed as pieces of the puzzle slowly started to form a clear image. "When you accepted the offer, you were determined to win this game. It all changed on the first day when I found you sitting on that bench. _'There's no point in any of this. We'll never win.'_ That wasn't you speaking at all! It's been what they did to you _the whole time_!" The fire raged on and Remy had to calm herself down to keep it from scorching the carpet of needles underneath. She took a deep breath before continuing. "On the second day, when we were fighting the grizzly bear, you couldn't hit it, because you _thought_ it was impossible, because they _made you think_ it was impossible. But you did better later because ever since then you've been worried about putting me in danger, am I right?" She smiled when she got a small nod in response. "It's your care for others that they forgot to take. It's because you don't want me to die, even if you've already accepted you own death, that we've made it this far." Only now did Remy realize just how flattering that sounded. Cameron cared for her. Sure, she probably cared for everyone. Still, the fact that they had met days prior and Remy was her main source of motivation was quite satisfying. Now Thirteen had it all figured out. She stood for a minute going over the facts in her head again and again to make sure she didn't miss anything before sitting back down to Cameron's left. "Thank you." She was missing one detail, though.

Allison's cheeks momentarily got a barely visible red tint to them. "I just think you still have a lot to experience, that's all."

"Hey. Look at me. Every time you think it's not worth it again, remember it's the Reapers' words in your mind. You'll go forward. Even if it were to be the last thing you'll ever do, you'll do your best because that is who you _really_ are. Understood?"

For the first time that week, Remy got to see Cameron's radiant smile. The spark was back. She ignited it. "Understood. But…" Allison trailed off, not sure whether it was wise to continue.

"But…?"

"What about your entry fee?"

The brunette sighed and the smile faded. "I still have no idea about that. I don't think I'm any different since coming here."

"I can't help you with that… considering I didn't even know your name until a couple hours ago," Cameron said with a shrug.

_Oh. The tombstone._ Remy covered her face with her hand. "I didn't mean for you to find out like that. Sorry."

"I don't have to use it if you don't want me to. Technically, you never _told_ me, anyway."

The younger doctor reached out her hand towards her partner. "Remy Hadley, at your humble service."

"Allison, nice to meet you." Cameron grinned, bowed her head slightly and shook Thirteen's hand.

So it begins.

* * *

><p>"<em>I've just received a message that one of the pairs has been eliminated."<em>

"_Which one?"_

"_Jared Simpson and Lucy Phillips."_

"_Good."_

"_I'll wipe that smug grin off your face. – To all Harriers! The next target is Remy Hadley and Allison Cameron!"_

"_They won't fall for your tricks."_

"_They fell for yours."_

"_Naw, it's a little harsh to call them 'tricks', don't you think? I prefer 'carefully concealed cooperation'."_

"_Call it whatever you want, you're deceiving them for nothing. I will have her."_

"_Teehee, how wrong you are! They've already improved tremendously."_

"_Not good enough. I've known them both much longer than you have; neither of them has got what it takes."_

"_Then test them yourself."_

"_Rest assured, I will."_

* * *

><p>There was something in the air that made Remy nervous. The day grew even colder and she shivered, looking at the sky for possible clouds of snow. She stole a glance at the wooden see-saw, then followed an invisible trail left by a floating leaf towards monkey bars and slides. The playground was quiet safe for the rustling grass and a stray black cat miowling occasionally as it sought refuge in a hollow trunk. Suddenly, the fire died out, vanishing in a puff of smoke. "Allison, we need to go," she said, already up and ready to run.<p>

"No," the blonde said and grabbed her hand firmly, making Thirteen stumble.

"But there are no children. The Noise are coming. We have to go!"

Allison shook her head, never letting go of her partner's. "That's what they expect us to do. Wherever they show up, everyone disappears, and if there's a pair of clearly distressed women running in the middle of a desolate playground in the woods, don't you think they can put two and two together? They want us to run. It's how they scare us into jumping right into their throat." She looked up at Remy with pleading eyes, fatigue dragging her eyelids down. "I'm tired of running."

"So what do you want to do, play hide and seek with them?"

"Let's go on the swing."

"Allison…"

"They won't be looking for us where they can see us, and if they do, I believe it's better to fight face to face than to be _shot in the back_. Please. Let's go on the swing."

Remy understood. The game was merely giving them an opportunity to face their fears, which Cameron so desperately strived for and needed to feel complete again. If they were to go down, fate would have it, so they would rather fall as warriors, not deserters. If Remy was to go down, she would do so by her side.

"Jump up; I'll swing you," she proclaimed as they reached the two swings; dirty but sturdy wooden planks hanging on rusty chains connected to a tall frame.

"You don't want to swing too?" the blonde asked curiously as she sat on one of the planks.

"_Someone_ needs to keep an eye on you while you're practically inviting our possible killers to join us and have a cup of tea," Thirteen replied with a raised eyebrow.

Allison gripped the iron chains and felt Remy's hands on her back. Soon she was high up in the air. At first, she was worried she would fall. She tightened her grip on the chains until her nails dug into her palms, but then she relaxed. This felt as close to absolute freedom as she would ever get. She knew they were in a cage, but it was like an aquarium with pictures of the sea under the surface around it, so that it didn't feel as enclosed as it truly was. She knew she couldn't really fly, but from up here, it seemed like she could. She could do anything.

"That high enough?"

But Allison didn't hear her. Her head was in the clouds and she marveled at the infinite possibilities. A starry-eyed smile grazed her features. Everything looked beautiful from up here; the grass, the sky, the monkey bars. Thirteen, who had meanwhile moved to observe her partner from up front.

Cameron jumped off the swing but lost her balance as she landed and stumbled right into Remy, who was quite fortunately there to catch her. However, she leapt away as soon as Cameron was back on her feet and a pair of white silky wings fluttered by.

"Are you scared of butterflies?" Allison asked, obviously having fun considering the amused grin on her face.

Somehow, somewhere, something had gone terribly wrong. Thirteen stood frozen in place. But would she really let her believe _that_? "No, I'm not! I just—" On the other hand, it was better this way. "I just don't like little… flying… things."

Cameron cocked her head to the side and took a few steps towards Remy. "What are you so afraid of? It's so much smaller than you, and just as fragile as you can be, or even more. It might be more scared of you than you think. It will say nothing to hurt you. The only thing it can do is tickle you with its wings. Is that so horrible?" Another few steps forward until there were only a few inches of space between the two of them. "If you only let it do so once, you might find out that there's really nothing to be scared of at all. In fact, it might prove quite pleasant. You two would grow closer together; find out more about one another. Find out that you have things in common." Remy had no idea how or why it happened and she stared at the blonde stunned into dumb silence as Allison leaned even closer and her fingers grazed Remy's arm lightly while her eyes were still fixed on Thirteen's. She was close, she was too close, and Remy was _too damn_ _close_, and why were they having this conversation, or more precisely, why was Cameron having this conversation, and why did she allow for it to happen and what if she had stumbled on purpose and now she was getting ridiculous and— "Then again, maybe that's not what you want."

"Are we still talking about the butterfly?" the brunette managed to stutter, a little short of breath for some reason.

"What else would we be talking about?" With that, Allison broke all contact and casually walked a few steps before calling out "Tag, you're it!" grinning from ear to ear and running in the opposite direction, leaving a positively confused internist behind.

"You didn't…" Thirteen blinked. _Women! Can't live with them, can't live without them… _"Not for long, kitty cat," she muttered to herself. "We might be playing cat and mouse, but a cheetah has just joined the game."

They paid no attention to the sun setting. They paid no attention to the snow that began to fall, either. They didn't even notice the clock on their hands blending with the skin.

* * *

><p><em>"You! What did you do?"<em>

_ "I'm not certain I know what you're talking about."_

_ "You know damn well what I'm talking about! There are two Players still out there! _Your_ Players!"_

_"Is that so? And do you have proof that I did anything to make it so, or are you just unwilling to accept the fact that your Harriers have failed?"_

_ "That is impossible."_

_ "I see. There is nothing more sad than a blind Game Master."_

_ "What?"_

_ "I told you they were smart; they were right under your nose the entire time, hidden where you couldn't see them. I did nothing."_

_ "You're lying."_

_ "Believe what you want. But to ensure you I'm not cheating, I will remain here for the rest of the week. You have my word."_

_ "Anyone can have your word for a good laugh."_

_ "Then you'd better amuse me, Conductor. Don't forget that I am still your superior."_

_ "I will have the Reapers keep an eye on you."_

_ "If that is what you wish."_


	7. W1D6 Reach Your Partner

**Author's Note:** Featuring Heaven't Not Enough by Steve Conte just because I can and it seemed to fit this chapter. (Hint: angst.) Also, what is it with me and Thirteen telling stories? Seriously. I baffle myself. o_o Anyway, enjoy this bit and see you soon for the final chapter... or not. Mwhaha. *cough*

(It's three in the bloody morning, so if there are any errors in this, I am truly sorry but refuse to do anything about it right now.)**  
><strong>

* * *

><p><strong>Week 1, Day 6: Reach Your Partner<strong>

_ 'Cause I couldn't cry_

_ 'Cause I turned away_

_ Couldn't see the score_

_ Didn't know the pain_

_Of leaving yesterday _

_Really far behind_

_ In another life_

_ In another dream_

_By a different name_

_ Gave it all away_

_ For a memory_

_ And a quiet lie_

Cameron had been right; she wasn't making it easier for her. If anything, she was only tying the knots into a humongous bundle of thread. Then again, who could blame her? It wasn't like she was doing it on purpose, was it? Hell, she wasn't even _doing_ anything exactly. It was what she did and then didn't and—sigh.

Remy could have anyone. She could walk right up to that redhead nurse and have her wrapped around her finger in a matter of seconds, maybe less than that. She could read the signs and use the opportunities and take what she would get. In a similar fashion, she could be free of them all with a single wave of her hand. And then there was Allison Cameron. The way she managed to screw with her head in this situation and stupefy her into acting like a preschooler with an IQ level of about 80 – and that's being kind – made Thirteen feel at the very least uneasy. An admirable feat, too; she had to give Cameron credit for that. _Things in common, huh._ They had nothing in common, except for being dead and working at the same place for the same boss, and their gender. Surely Cameron realized that, no? All of that?

But why was she thinking about it like this? Allison had just been talking about the butterfly. Within an inappropriately close distance of her partner. Staring right into her soul with those emerald eyes of hers. No more, no less.

Thirteen leaned her head against the trunk of the pine underneath which she had been sitting and contemplating the recent events. She needed the time she didn't have. It was hard to concentrate with the blonde doctor lying sound asleep in the thin carpet of snow right next to her, since her eyes kept betraying her and wandering back to the golden locks until she decided to give in and just observe the older woman. What was it about her? What could it have been? The fact that she couldn't recognize any of the usual mannerisms that could possibly cause sudden infatuation was driving her insane. As she watched Allison's chest heaving with every breath and the air curling in even intervals, she couldn't help but let her mind take in the fact that Allison was beautiful. Slightly parted, red velvet lips decorated her in comparison pale, porcelain face, and motionless eyelashes covered where gems would soon appear. Some of her hair was wet with snow and stuck to her forehead. If Remy ever resorted to banal clichés – which she would not – she would say Cameron looked like an angel. But if guys like Joshua were this world's angels, then that could have also been a fairly rude insult.

She frowned as she remembered the last time she saw her partner sleeping. Cameron looked at peace now, but who knows what was going on in her dreams. Remy brushed a strand of hair off the sleeping blonde's face. "Don't be scared." Maybe Allison wasn't in danger and there was no need to whisper these words. And maybe she was. It was the one risk Remy was not willing to take.

_It might be more scared of you than you think._ She shook her head. The butterfly. It was all just the butterfly.

_"Mission 6: Get to the cemetery. You have two hours. Fail, and face erasure. – The Reapers"_

Thirteen poked the other woman. "Allison, wake up."

The newly formed wound on her palm had already awoken the blonde, though. "Ow," she grumbled, "Why can't we ever go someplace nice?"

Remy didn't answer, for she was bothered by a different reality. "It sounds way too easy. Be on your guard."

_2:00_

* * *

><p>They just had to make them wake up in a place from where pretty much every way to the goal led by a hospital, didn't they? Cameron had never thought of it that way, but now that they were walking down the same street again, she couldn't help but deem the closeness of the graveyard to the medical center rather morbid. More precisely, Princeton Cemetery could be found right across the street, though it was inaccessible from that side.<p>

Once again they walked in silence, but this time it was Thirteen who kept quiet and for entirely different reasons. "Did I offend you yesterday?" Allison asked worriedly. "I was just saying—"

"—What you thought to be true. It's nothing; I'm just trying to focus on the road and making sure no one's following us," Thirteen cut her off and smiled weakly.

"You don't know what's true," Cameron suddenly objected, her voice stern.

"Nothing is true," came the half-hearted reply. "And everything. It depends on the point of view."

"So what's yours?" the blonde inquired, hastening her pace a bit to keep up with Thirteen.

Remy shook her head and looked at the sidewalk under her feet. "That it doesn't matter."

Allison frowned, but remained silent after that.

As they reached the intersection and took the path down Wiggins Street, Cameron glimpsed the welcome sign of a café she used to go to. It beat Starbucks any day of the week. The haven was appropriately named 'Small World'. Why yes, it was; imagine the set of coincidences that brought her and Remy to this town, their death and encounter. She made a mental note to get Remy to have coffee with her there sometime; that is, if they are still friends when this is over. That is, unless all this turns to dust. She frowned and took the left turn.

Thirteen shook the iron bars of the gate of the cemetery. It wouldn't budge. "It seems we'll have to climb over the wall. Well, you did give me a good lesson on how to act like a nine year old yesterday, so this shouldn't be a problem, right?" It wasn't even too high, just a few feet of stone cubes. "I'll go first and then pull you up, okay?" she suggested and started climbing. She could hold on easily to the creases between the stones, but somehow, when she reached the top, she couldn't pull herself up. When her hand reached out for the ledge, all it found was more of the coarse surface.

"What's wrong?" Cameron asked from below.

Thirteen stared at the white wall in her way that seemed to only appear when she touched it and faded away into nothing the farther it was from the spot where her fingers. She cursed under her breath and jumped down. "Well, we're not going in that way, either."

"I know, I saw it." _Nothing can ever be easy._ "Maybe it's not all around the graveyard."

"It is," a deep voice ensured them. The two doctors turned around to see a tall man standing close by, dressed in jeans and a bright red cotton jacket, his hands in his pockets and his face barely visible under the hood that was covering it. "You'll have to do what I tell you in order to pass."

"Who are you?" Allison asked.

"A Support Reaper. I belong to the lowest Reaper rank and my purpose is to create challenges for Players, although I can't attack them directly, which I dread, I assure you."

_Obviously, why did I even ask. _"Alright then, bring it."

The Reaper smirked. "Defeat these Noise and then we'll talk." He then disappeared with a wave of his hand.

The two women looked about. "What Noise? There are none," Allison whispered, but in reality, she could feel the change in the air.

"Don't worry, there soon will be." As soon as Remy said those words, an ear-piercing screech stormed through the street followed by a pair of very quick, very angry flying Noise.

"Why does it fly? I don't like things that can fly when I can't!" the blonde whimpered.

They looked like flying snakes with four feet, fur and an otter-like head. They were mostly as white as the snow around and thus a little difficult to make out, but the grey mane around their neck and the fluffy tail made it easier to see just how close they were. Where their front paws should have been, four purple, metallic bones stuck out of the body instead, two on each side, pointing forward and then cut sharply to the other side so that they almost looked like wings but apparently only served as a balance support. How those things could fly was beyond anyone. Red eyes were set firmly on their targets.

"They look like really long evil minks," Thirteen muttered to herself.

"_Minks_? Is there any animal they _cannot_ turn into a deadly version of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre incarnate?" Cameron whimpered, although she had to admit that she probably preferred minks over spiders or megalodons. Or grizzly bears, for that matter.

_Like you've seen those movies_, Thirteen thought before shooting bullets and fire at the beasts, who evaded them all with no difficulties. Two wires launched themselves from the wall of the cemetery to the house on the other side of the road and obstructed the minks' way, but the beasts gracefully curled around them and danced their way through the obstacle. Without even slowing down, each of the flying Noise lunged at its prey. Both Cameron and Thirteen ducked out of the way. Sharp fangs clicked but captured nothing but air.

Remy would have none of that. She decided to use the opportunity when the minks weren't focused on them and ran at one of the creatures before Masamune's spirit sword even materialized in her hand. She knew the mink would notice her and try to escape the blade, so she intentionally swung it next to it instead of aiming right at the body. It wasn't a great hit, but it wasn't bad either; the mink twisted itself with a wail as blood flowed freely through its fur. It growled and swiftly curled around Remy, tightening its grip, while the other went for Cameron. _Great, it can't just bite my head off; it has to strangle me first._ Her feet floated off the ground. Now her options were to either wait until it decides to eat her or fry them both. _Stupid, stupid idea._

Allison's options were way simpler than that. One of them would have to take the shot and there was no time for her to think about it. Her or Remy. She wouldn't make the same mistake again.

The mink screeched and wailed as one of Cameron's wires let it taste its own medicine, digging into its flesh and through to Remy. It refused to let go of its victim, which cost it its life. Both the wire and the beast thus met their end, dissolving into the air and falling down with the snow. Thirteen watched in horror as the other mink, which was left unattended, shot through the air with the obvious intention of avenging its mate and knocked Cameron down, the sharp tips of its wings pinning her to the ground and teeth biting into her arm. Allison cried out in pain.

_Over my dead body._ She couldn't risk accidentally hurting the blonde even more, so she made another sword and cut the beast in half instead, sprinkling blood over Cameron's waist.

"God – that – hurts like all hell," Cameron whimpered as Thirteen helped her sit up, clutching her arm with her healthy hand. She was shaking from head to toe, her face was as white as a sheet and tears were running down her cheeks freely because trying to hold them back was just not even close to being one of her concerns at the moment.

"Just use the healing pin!"

"I can't," the blonde whimpered as blood seeped through her jacket and dyed the snow.

"Sure you can! The sooner you do it, the sooner the pain subsides, so come on!"

"It's gone. I lost it."

"What the hell do you mean you _lost it_?" Thirteen frowned as realization dawned on her.

"I was going to…"

Remy watched helplessly as Allison searched around for a few seconds and then picked up a crumbled piece of metal. The orange-green paint was partly scraped off and the pin was in a state that didn't even resemble a badge anymore. _Shit! SHIT!_ "How can these things even break? _They shoot fireballs_ _for god's_ _freaking SAKE!_"

"Please don't yell," the blonde mumbled quietly and let the pin fall through her fingers – or perhaps she was too focused on the pain to keep holding it, Thirteen didn't know.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm not yelling at you," Remy assured her. Just now did she notice she was clenching her fists. "Hey, Reaper guy! We killed the Noise, now let us in!" she called out to no one in particular.

"Good! Now it's time for part two – stay out here for the rest of the mission. When the time is about to run out, I'll erase the wall."

Remy turned around to see the same Reaper standing above the frightened Cameron. She looked at the clock on her hand. _0:54._ "Are you kidding me? We did what you asked!"

The man's grin was the only thing she could see through his hood. "I never said there would only be one challenge. There's nothing wrong with a little practice in patience."

Fire burned in her stomach. "She could bleed to death out here you son of a bitch! I swear, if you don't let us in _right now_, I'm gonna show you how she feels!"

"Fifty-three minutes, no less."

"How do I even know I can trust you now?"

"The game has rules even Reapers cannot break."

The brunette growled and launched a bright blue fireball in his general direction, but the Reaper was long gone before it had a chance to hit. All he left was her partner howling in pain. _He planned for this to happen._ Remy ran a hand through her hair and hurried back to Allison. "Take off your jacket," she said in a rigid voice, thinking that there would be a better time to utter those words under just about _any_ other circumstances whatsoever. She did the same and, after struggling with it for a minute, ripped off a sleeve of her own shirt.

"What are you doing?" Cameron asked without moving a muscle – voluntarily, at least.

"I'm fixing you up. Now be a good doctor and take off your jacket," Remy repeated more kindly this time.

It was bad alright. Two rows of teethmarks decorated Cameron's arm like collars and she thought she caught a glimpse of the bone underneath at one moment. She bandaged the wound and tied a firm knot on the side, trying her best not to make it too much worse. Allison bit her hand in a vain attempt to stifle the cries escaping her lips. "I'm sorry," Remy mumbled and helped her put her jacket back on. She couldn't really do anything else. Without a hospital, one doctor was just a random person on the street who happened to have a medical degree. "Thank you for taking the bullet for me."

"It's okay," Allison whispered in response, though they both knew it wasn't. This wasn't what she had expected. She hadn't thought she would have to endure this. "It was either you or my arm. It doesn't take a genius to figure out which is more valuable," she said with a weak smile.

_0:49._

Time seemed to have stopped as she cradled Allison in her arms and shushed her. "Hush, it's gonna be fine, it's okay," she kept repeating even though she barely believed it herself. _Why not me? Why the hell not me?_ "Hey, I'll tell you a story, okay?"

The blonde dug her head into Thirteen's shoulder. "Okay."

But what kind of story? Thirteen didn't know any stories. Oh well, she would just have to make one up as she went. "Once upon a time, there was a hungry wolf that dwelled in the forest. One day, he stumbled upon a pretty young girl. 'What are you doing in the woods all alone, little one?' he asked. 'I'm picking flowers; come pick them with me!' the girl answered. 'But aren't you afraid of me, a big bad wolf?' the wolf asked again. 'No, sir,' said the smiling girl, 'for I see that you are really not evil.' The wolf was intrigued by this strange little creature and agreed to play with her in the forest. He quenched his hunger when she wasn't looking, hunting a rabbit here and there. Time passed and the girl soon found out she never wanted to leave the wolf, and the wolf had no more desire to harm her like he had intended, for he too loved the girl; but he realized that he could never be free with her. When the sun was setting and they had to part ways, the girl confessed her love for the wolf. 'Please, sir, stay with me!' she cried. 'No, girl,' the wolf replied coldly. 'I will not stay, nor do I love you. I never have.' He ran off into the deep forest, never to be seen again, and although the girl waited and ventured back into the woods every day, waiting for the wolf to come out, he never went hungry again."

"You could have told me a happy story," Cameron grumbled in between soft sobs.

Remy shrugged. "It was the first thing that came to mind."

"I wonder what that says about you."

"It says that I've read The Little Red Riding Hood too many times," she replied coldly.

"Why didn't the wolf ever come back if he truly loved the girl?"

"The story doesn't tell us."

"You just made it up; you must have known the reason!" Allison nagged.

"Maybe he didn't want her around in case he'd get hungry and eat her. What do I know?"

"She would have been fine!"

Remy rolled her eyes. "Okay, fine: However, years later, the two were reunited and lived happily ever after. Happy now?"

"Much better, thank you," the injured woman replied with a smile that quickly faded. "It hurts," she sobbed.

"I know," the brunette replied, not knowing what else to say. There was blood all over her hands and now Cameron's hair as she caressed her, praying for a magic wand. Or a bottle of painkillers, that would do, too.

"Please make it stop," Cameron wailed and dug her fingers into her partner's side. Fresh tears broke through her eyes.

"I don't know how." Remy was on the verge of tears herself. _It's easier to die than to watch someone die._ There was only one person who could help. "Joshua, get your ass down here!" she called out to the sky. There was nothing except for more snowflakes descending on the two women. "I know you can hear me, _get the hell down here!_"

"I come when I want to, not when I'm told," a stern voice informed her. Soon after, Joshua appeared kneeling right in front of them.

"And yet here you are," Remy pointed out. "Look, I don't have time for this. We need your help. She's in pain." She nodded towards the wound and the puddle of blood in the snow.

"That's not my problem," the boy replied nonchalantly.

"You've helped us before! Just a tip or some stupid riddle, you've got to have _something_!"

"I'm not here for you to rely on my helping hand every time things start to get rough. You are responsible for her injury, not me. You take care of it," he replied uncompromisingly and vanished, certain he would not be called again.

Thirteen stared at the blank space where he had been sitting. The boy was right. It was her fault. If she hadn't been so reckless and overconfident, Allison never would have found herself in such a hopeless situation. Her blood was – literally – on Remy's hands, on the hands of the one who had vowed to protect her. Suddenly, she regretted being so angry with Cameron a few days prior.

A single tear fell in Allison's hair and mingled with the crimson liquid.

* * *

><p><em>0:05. 0:04. <em>Each of the remaining minutes seemed to take twice as long as the previous one. "Hold on. We're almost there." _0:03._ Allison had grown numb to the pain, and to everything else too. All she did now was stare at the sleeve of Thirteen's jacket and count the threads she could see. _0:02._

"Challenge complete. Wall clear!"

Thirteen didn't even look around for anyone to scold and yell at and summon lightning at. Later, she could do all that later. Right now she had to get Allison to safety. She pulled her companion to her feet and dragged her across the imaginary threshold of the cemetery, suddenly feeling as if she were taking her to her doom. They both could end up there way too soon. _0:01._ They walked past the gate.

She slid to her knees along with Allison, utterly exhausted. Those few steps seemed as if she crawled a hundred miles on broken glass. "You'll be alright now. It's gonna be alright." She kissed Allison on the forehead, happy she could finally believe in her own words.

_We're going to be alright._


	8. W1D6,5 Intermezzo

**Author's Note:** Okay, so I felt like I had unintentionally written most of the story from Thirteen's POV while I was going to be unbiased - whoops. Anyway, that led me to believe that Cameron's no doubt interesting thoughts on the matter deserve some love as well. It's not much, but it's something to give you a general idea and also something to sum up what's happened before the grande finale.

**This chapter contains a lot of conditionals, THE part of the English language I am most uncertain in** (well and then there are prepositions and my limited vocabulary, but I can deal with that). Please forgive me if it sounds weird. I just really despise conditionals. Dieeee.

* * *

><p><strong>Week 1, Day 6 ½: Intermezzo or If Allie Weren't Too Mature to Have a Diary<strong>

**Entry 1:** This is insane. This whole thing is insane. I can't be dead. I sure as hell know what dead looks like and I am _not_ dead. I refuse to be dead. I can see, I can hear, I can feel, I feel terrible and I am _not dead _because dead people are happy and can't do any of those things! Then again, in this state, I'd rather be. _They_ took everything.

I met someone here. It took me a minute to realize I was found by Dr. Hadley, one of the new fellows in Diagnostics. Huh. She made me join her although I have no interest in damned pointless game. But I'll stop now, or else I'll just be repeating myself. Together, I and Dr. Hadley somehow managed to stay alive for the rest of the day – or whatever you call this 'existence'. I don't know what she's doing here and frankly, I don't care. I just want to go home.

**Entry 2:** I made a huge mistake today, one that almost cost us both our lives. She – Thirteen – devised a plan that could have gotten us out of the mess we were in, but I hesitated. I didn't go with it. In the end, we were saved by two strange Players while I stood there like an idiot and pretended to have a reason for jeopardizing everything. This Joshua person told me I needed to trust my partner. Is that my problem? Does my inability to trust this woman threaten us both? But how can I trust someone I just met, let alone someone who doesn't exactly have a good reputation as far as I know?

What am I thinking? That's not like me. I don't know anything about her; I only know what I've heard, and she only knows what she's heard of me, and yet she trusted me, or maybe because of it. Maybe because of what she's heard, I've let her down. Maybe what _I've_ heard isn't true at all. Why are we willing to sacrifice ourselves for our foolish, distorted perceptions of the other? Maybe, if she had known what she knows now, she never would have come back for me. Maybe if I had, I wouldn't have let her. Maybe in the end, she's a much better person than I am.

I'm an idiot.

**Entry 3:** She was mad. Really, really mad. She had all the reason to. I wish I had a time machine to go back to two days ago and convince her I'm not the one with whom she wants to spend a week fighting for her life because no matter how sorry I am, she still could have died – again. I barely avoided telling her the truth about what happened three days ago. I don't want her to know. I'm not even sure myself. Why can't I remember him? He was there, he had the gun, but I can't remember… I guess I was too shocked to pay attention to the rest; 'the rest' being the identity of my murderer. God damn it. What if I'm doing all this just to be killed again? What if it's someone I know? Paranoia, paranoia, I know. I just… I don't want to die. Is that so bad? I could have saved a life, instead we've lost two. This sort of thing can piss you off, you see.

But then something happened. Something I didn't anticipate. And I realized that once we break through the shell, we're not that different after all, and I never wanted to let go.

What bothers me is the fact that I still don't even know the name of the one who saved my life again – in more ways than one.

**Entry 4:** It's getting too much to bear. I think I might give up. We went back to the hospital today as part of our mission to 'find ourselves'. The place was a disaster… like clock hands going in the opposite direction; it works, but it's just not right. Wilson punched House because of us, although Remy says it wasn't our fault. Oh, that reminds me, I finally know who she is; better than before, I mean. I like Remy. It's a beautiful name for a beautiful girl, and easy to remember, and just, you know, it's nice. As for the rest of her, it still baffles me… All I know is that we were a team and then she disappeared, and I was alone. And I knew that there would be no one there when it's time.

It's not just that I was scared of being alone; I was scared of being without her. I was scared of what could have happened to her. I was scared because…

I like _Remy_.

I have never been so terrified in my life.

**Entry 5:** I don't know what I'm doing. I'm messing with her but that wasn't my intention, I swear! Every time I think I'm about to do _something_, I stop myself and realize I have no idea what the hell that _something_ is. All I do is keep confusing myself, and possibly her too.

We spent a great deal of time just talking, since the mission only required us to 'survive the day'. Now she knows it all. Remy jokes all the time. I like it when she jokes. It eases the tension. She made sure I've realized that I can pull through even without hope – my entry fee. I don't know how I could have missed it. By the evening we were running around the playground like two stubborn kids way too late for dinner. Looking back on it now, we probably went a little insane, but I don't care. We felt carefree for the first time. At least I know I did. I think she did, too. She seemed happy and I was happy because, apparently, I made her happy, and for one stupid, dumb, moronic moment, I wanted to kiss her. Does that even make sense? Why doesn't it make sense! None of it makes sense! I don't even know who I am anymore! Maybe the real me is dead in the bottom of the abyss now and I'm only the carrion that's left, standing at the edge of the cliff.

**Entry 6:** I saved her, and I'm proud. I finally got a chance to repay for at least a portion of what she's done for me, and even though I went through living hell afterwards, I don't regret anything. Okay, so she then had to take care of me for the next hour, but it still counts, right? Remy did a good job of it, too. She told me a story about a wolf who fell in love with a girl he met in the forest. I'm not sure I understood it, but something about the story seemed familiar… or maybe it was just the pain talking. Still, my version of the story would have played out differently. But I can tell you about that another time.

The bad thing is, I lost our healing pin. I don't know how long we can last without it. Then again, there's only one day left. One day that will change everything.

I'm not even afraid anymore, because I know we're going to be alright.


	9. W1D7 Defeat Your Partner

**Week 1, Day 7: Defeat Your Partner**

She hated them for doing that to Allison. She hated them all. She loathed them. She despised them. She wanted to kill them all with her bare hands, rip their hearts out, cook soup with them and eat it. Then she would resurrect those bastards and kill them again, and maybe a few more times after that and _then_ once again. But they couldn't even have hearts for her to rip out, because those _things_ were not people or even remotely human. The Noise had more humanity in them than Joshua and his entire oh godly ensemble.

Her arms were still wrapped protectively around her partner, whom she must have mistaken for a giant teddy bear in her sleep, afraid of her pain more than Remy's own. The victim didn't seem to mind too much, however, as she was cuddled up to the brunette, nuzzling Remy's neck.

"Remy?"

Thirteen's eyes shot open and she sat up so quickly as if she had just realized she had been sleeping on a bed of cacti. "Allison! Allison, are yuh—does it still a—are you okay?" She was so startled she didn't know which expression of 'Oh my god I fell asleep and now I don't know _ARE YOU ALRIGHT_?' to blurt out first. There was no blood and her shirt was still intact, but the only thing that told her was that now the wound wasn't protected. She helped Cameron sit up and pulled up her sleeve in order to examine the arm nervously.

The blonde giggled. "Relax! I'm fine, thanks to you."

Oh, right. The day has changed. It was all back where it started. No blood. Right. All good. _Thanks to me you got injured in the first place._ She mentally slapped herself for making a fool of herself. "Oh. Um, that's good." Suddenly she felt terribly dumb for overreacting like that. Judging by Cameron shyly looking away and smirking, however, the older doctor must have thought it was cute. Remy rolled her eyes. Back where it started.

"Look around."

The brown-haired woman did as she was told. Their surroundings seemed to merge into a great white desert, but she noticed that there were strange little bumps all around it in placed so that there was mostly equal distance between each two of them. Some were taller than others, some had bouquets of withering flowers with their leaves fallen off due to the snowstorm that had taken place in the night lying before them. When she looked closely, she realized the bumps were, in reality, tombstones. "We're still at the graveyard."

"Yes, but that's not what I meant. Look again."

Thirteen glanced at Cameron with a frown, clearly not understanding her point, so Allison gestured towards a row of gravestones in front of them. "The flowers."

Remy looked again. There seemed to be two rows of red spots, each to one side of an invisible road. Upon closer inspection, she saw that they were indeed flowers in full bloom. Small, slightly crumpled red petals were arranged into a circle on top of every flower and from the center of every group of petals emerged a long, bright red anther curved upwards.

"Spider lilies," the blonde informed her with a shaky voice as she stared at the strange plants.

There was still a frown on Thirteen's face. "Okay… So what's so scary about a few spider lilies? It is weird that they're not damaged or covered in snow, but I still don't see your point."

Allison cleared her throat. "Well for one thing, they are commonly used as ornamental plants in various countries in Asia, but they're not even supposed to be growing here. That's not what bothers me the most, though. Spider lilies are a bad omen."

"How is a random species of plant life a bad omen?"

"You don't understand," Cameron said and shook her head. "There are many legends of these exact flowers. I know a few, and none of them are good."

"Then tell me," Remy suggested and crossed her arms over her chest. "In return, I'll tell you it's just superstitious nonsense."

The blonde sighed. She plucked one of the lilies nearby out of the ground and twirled it around her fingers as she spoke. "It is said that the spider lily grows on both sides of the path to hell, and that it's permeated with poison that makes one lose consciousness and memory. Never can its leaves and flowers grow at the same time; when it blooms, the leaves fall off, and when the leaves grow, the flowers wilt. It is said that they were once two elves, one of whom guarded the flower and the other protected the leaf. They knew they could never meet but were curious to see one another, so they managed to trick the god overseeing them and met on a fateful spring night of a full moon. They fell deeply in love. When the god found out, he punished them by laying a curse on the two, so that they would never see each other again. Because of this, they say that these flowers foreshadow the departure of a loved one. They say that when a person sees someone they may never see again, spider lilies will sprout."

Remy got so engrossed in Allison's stories, contemplating the power of the mysteriously concealed devil, that she didn't notice Allison had stopped talking until Allison's piercing gaze abandoned the petals and met her own. She poked the other woman playfully. "Come on, Allison, it's just a bunch of fairytales. Don't be bothered by them."

"I guess. I just have a bad feeling about this…"

Suddenly, their phones went off. However, there was no pang of the clock inprinting itself in their flesh as they would have expected. They shared a brief worried look and both checked their phones.

_"Follow the way. There is no time limit. I will be waiting."_

Remy stood up to go. Cameron followed close behind and grabbed her by the wrist. "Don't!"

The brunette turned around and smiled a reassuring smile. "Allison, it's just stories. These flowers can't harm you in any way. Besides, what else do you want to do, stay here until we freeze to our second death?" She squeezed the blonde's arm and immediately noticed that she was instinctively touching the spot where the wound had been. _Stupid._ "There's no point in staring at what's been. We can only go forward."

Cameron knew she was going to regret this. "Alright. I just don't like this. Do you think they're trying to tell us something with all this?"

"If that's the case, then I have a message to deliver as well," Thirteen said, took the flower Cameron was still holding and ripped it to shreds, letting the torn petals descend onto the field of snow. "We are leaving here alive."

She could only hope she sounded more confident than she truly felt. It was not right.

* * *

><p>They must have been walking for hours. The path took the same route they had walked the day before, only in the opposite direction. They exited the cemetery and marched past the medical center, past the Small World café and Conte's Bar, which they would hopefully see again. They entered the Community Park and kept going to the north, by one of the few lakes in Princeton, and into the woods again. Those vast, menacing woods. That was where things took a turn for the worse. They had been there before, together and by themselves too, and once they got deeper into the forest, they couldn't recall any of it. Wildlife had disappeared and the deeper they went, the more they felt that the real forest had only extended to miles behind them. This was a still, windless city of branches that the sky could not be seen through. Although they were surrounded by all those trees and moss growing on the rocks, there was nothing. Although they had one another, they felt strangely alone, as if they were drifting apart just by following the ominous trail. Yet they were still being observed with a wary eye of spider lilies, which all looked exactly the same, not even one petal bent in a different angle, all staring right through the two women as if they knew everything that was going on in their minds, hearts and souls. It was as if the lilies knew their deepest, darkest secrets, everything they kept from the world – and one another. They were their embodiment. Might have been that each of those flowers represented a different secret, but the one thing they all had in common were the unheard whispers: <em>Go ahead. <em>In order to pass the time and to help her mask her fear better, Cameron played around with her remaining pins.

"That's weird," she mumbled while toying with the pin that had helped her summon a giant icicle before in her hand.

"What is it?" Thirteen asked, happy to have received an opportunity to stop walking and thinking for a minute.

"The ice pin. Previously there was one icicle drawn on it, but now there are three."

The brunette frowned. "Let me see," she murmured and examined the pin herself. "It was number #001 before. This pin is number #002. It says Ice Risers."

"Are yours all the same?"

Remy pulled out all her pins and unfolded them in her hand. "Yeah, mine haven't changed… but hey, this is funny. Remember that light bullet thing I've been using? Its number is thirteen."

"Huh? I just noticed; the barbed wire I have is number thirty-one."

Both women looked at one another from under their eyebrows. Those were the first pins they had used. "No way. No way in hell."

* * *

><p>Apparently, all that wasn't good (and spooky) enough. The next thing they knew, they reached the entrance to hell itself. At least it surely looked like one. In front of them stood a rocky hill as tall as the eye could see and at its bottom a mouth of a cave. The path of lilies urged the two women to go on. Cameron and Thirteen had no choice but to walk through the opening with Remy carrying a moderate ball of spirit fire to aid them in the darkness that arose.<p>

Even if the message said otherwise, there was no time. There was never enough time. Never an opportunity, never a chance. They both knew that, and both kept walking in silence with the knowledge that they would regret it later for many, if not all days to be.

Thirteen stopped and rubbed her eyes, though she was neither drowsy nor had something fallen in them; it was a mere gesture of frustration. There was only one way reality would have it, and that way led nowhere to Cameron and her having a decent conversation in the near future. "Hey, Allison."

"Yes?" Those lucid irises of hers burned bright blue in the light of the fire. Thirteen thought she unwillingly captured the blonde's innocence perfectly.

It caused her to hesitate momentarily. "I just… I'm grateful I didn't have to spend the week with a stinking hobo or a truck driver who had been conveying African immigrants."

Cameron couldn't suppress a chuckle, but the point got across. "Me too." The blonde cocked her head to the side and stared at her partner for a while that seemed eternal, trying to read and reach her. Thirteen stared right back, doing the same. The fire crackled, floating above her palm.

And then they moved on.

* * *

><p>What they found as they advanced through the tunnel was not what they had been expecting. They were expecting many different scenarios, ranging from a raging fire-breathing dragon guarding a treasure to skeletal giants and a sparkling double rainbow popping out of nowhere with the word 'CONGRATULATIONS' written on it in marshmallows. A blonde boy sitting on a leather armchair on top of an aquarium that had feet ago still been a strange mixture of stone and obsidian was not one of the options they had considered. The 'dungeon' was illuminated by numerous torches on the walls and a magnificent-looking chandelier braching out into twelve curved bars of gold, hanging off the ceiling. Aside of the now familiar pair of Moorish idols, other various kinds of marine species were swimming underneath their feet; flat yellow foxfaces, a manta ray, families of tiger tail seahorses, and one great white shark, among others. Interestingly enough, none of the aquarium's inhabitants expressed the desire to feed on their neighbors. They were simply swimming, peacefully, around their creator and the coral reefs that he had built for them.<p>

The path of lilies ended at his feet. He raised his hands slowly and clapped, but the voice echoing through the hall was not the boy speaking.

"Welcome." A tall, black haired man emerged from somewhere behind one of the many bookshelves swarming with literature written in dead languages. His hair was ruffled, his clothing meticulously unified into a quite formal black attire, hands joined behind his back, and the icy cold radiated by his piercing blue eyes resembled the view one would see while standing on top of an iceberg and staring down at the raging sea. "I'm glad you two have managed to come here… alive." He put deep, unneeded emphasis on the last word, and glared at Joshua as he said it. The blonde boy smirked without even looking back at him, but said nothing.

Something about that man seemed familiar to Thirteen. Not even the vague 'I might have nailed this guy a year or two ago' type of familiarity but the blatant, brain-drilling 'For Pete's sake where do I know this guy from' type. Looking apart from the butler suit and the distant demeanor, she finally remembered. "Mr. Griffiths?"

Cameron glanced at her companion in confusion. "You know him?"

"Sort of. He was my last patient… right before I died," Thirteen answered in a low voice, narrowing her eyes at the suspicious man. "What are you doing here?" she called out to him.

"Changing the rules of my own game. You might want to look at your phones."

Remy and Allison shared a worried look before reading the new message.

_"Part two: Kill your partner. There is no time limit. Also, the way back is sealed."_

Cameron's guts instantly told her to look back and indeed, the message wasn't lying; where the glass had merged with the stone was now a solid wall and at the level of her face a row of torches.

Thirteen's first reaction was entirely different. "What do you mean _'kill your partner'_? I'm not killing anyone! Aren't partners _required _to get you through the game? And what the _hell_ are _you_ doing here?" she snapped. It might have been an illusion, some mind trick that would cause her vision to replace the image of whoever this man was with something familiar to fool her. But why him? She never liked him much, either. He had always been asking too many questions.

The man who appeared to be Seth gritted his teeth. "There is a Player that has no business here." He extended his arm, pointing at the blonde doctor. "_She_ was never meant to become one of us. I won't tolerate this nonsense any longer. She needs to be rid of, and that is your mission."

Cameron's heart skipped a beat. If that was true, no matter what the reason, whom would Remy choose? The taller woman, on the other hand, remained calm. "Then why don't you just erase her yourself? Go on, go ahead." She ignored the blonde's frightened stare and kept digging her eyes into the raging sea.

Seth clenched his fists. "How dare you—!"

"He can't," interrupted Joshua, still sitting on the armchair with an amused smile on his face. "He is the Game Master, but even he cannot violate the rules he had set, and surely not in front of me." He directed his attention towards his subordinate. "Aaron, I reckon we both realize they will not heed your wishes solely because of us unless we give them the answers the no doubt deserve. Allow me to explain the situation. You see, Aaron here has a certain personal matter to settle with Dr. Hadley, a many years old pact indeed. Tell me, Ms. Hadley, what was your entry fee?"

Thirteen didn't see the boy's point, but she figured that if anyone would get her closer to understanding what was happening, it would be him. And again she was reminded of the fact that she hadn't realized what she held dearest even after missing it for seven days. "I don't know," she whispered with a frown.

"I see. You didn't notice something being different? Something you used to do quite often when you were alive, albeit not voluntarily per se… What could it be?" he mused aloud, resting his chin on the back of his hand as a feigned gesture of being deep in thought.

Remy's eyes widened and her jaw dropped an inch or two. She hadn't trembled once during the last seven days. "B-but that makes no sense…"

"Does it not? What would you value more than the essential freedom and the belief of bending the rules to your will that your disease gave you? Behind all these walls, bitterness and denial, for you, the rest of it has turned into a benefit, whether you realize it or not. You are free of all conventions, nothing matters to you. Even while alive, you have already been playing the game for years and you know that not many people know what it's like to be truly alive."

"What is he talking about?" Cameron inquired with a shaking voice and stepped between her and the so-called enemies.

Crap. She wasn't supposed to find out like this. Actually, Cameron wasn't supposed to find out _ever_. They were supposed to get back to life, say goodbye and never speak of any of this again, preferably drifting apart until one day she would die and no one would ask any questions. Remy stood frozen on the spot. "I have Huntington's," she finally mumbled, still visibly shaken by the news she received and looked up at the blonde with silent expectations. She thought she might have been shaking then.

Allison couldn't believe her own eyes and ears. She opened her mouth a few times as if she were to say something, then closed it again as her eyes grew wet, glazed with tears she wouldn't let fall. Her lip quivered and in her gaze was written an emotion Thirteen perceived as betrayal, and it broke her. _None of this was supposed to happen._ And betrayal sires two children: hate and resentment. Remy kept telling herself Cameron couldn't feel those, but they were what she saw, staring right back at her from the forest of emerald green. _I'm sorry,_ she was going to say, but her vocal chords betrayed her. Then she realized the cruel irony of the situation; she was not supposed to be the one saying those words, yet she felt like there was no reason for her to consider herself a human being anymore if she didn't. And then she realized what she had and tears almost filled her own eyes. "So you're telling me that I went through all of this without even knowing, just to die again?" Her voice had this deep subtle growl to it that suggested she was about to start screaming, but she didn't. Instead she gulped down the lump in her throat and waited patiently for the answer.

"That is correct. Aaron here spent a great deal of time studying you up close, as I'm sure you noticed. What can I say, once he sets his mind on something, it's very difficult to tell him otherwise. Now I was asked to supervise this round and one of my duties is ensuring that no wrongdoings are committed. I knew he wouldn't listen to reason, so I arranged for you to have a suitable partner during your stay, kind of behind his back."

Cameron was stunned into silence once again and turned to face the blonde boy. She hadn't been able to remember the face of the man that had fired the gun, only the darned smile. Now that she saw him, the picture seemed to fall right into place. "_You killed me._"

"Correct again, two for two," Joshua confirmed.

"And you don't consider murder a wrongdoing?"

"Not in the greater picture, no. It's not something you would understand even if I explained it to you. That aside, Aaron knows about my little mishap and as you can see, he is not pleased."

Cameron decided to ignore the murder for now as there were more pressing matters for them to discuss. "But you said that if we survived this week, you would bring us back to life! We got through everything you threw our way. We're perfect candidates!"

Joshua tilted his head to the side and his eyes shot up in surprise. "Perfect? What ever gave you the impression that you're perfect? Exceptional, yes, but by no means perfect, or else you would have already ascended to the Higher Plane. You are _suitable_. Alas, it is not up to me to decide the number of Players who can be revived this week, and the Game Master has already decided, which is why you need to _kill your partner._"

Thirteen clenched her fists. She was devising a plan. A flawless plan. She was certain there would be absolutely no killing in her near future; that was simply out of the question. At least not in Cameron's case. But she knew how to set it all right. "Make me a Reaper," she demanded, decision evident in her tone.

All the others were caught off-guard. "Excuse me?" the blonde boy asked.

"You heard me. I want to be one of you. That way, Allison gets to live, and I get to _not die_."

"You will have to face and erase new Players every day. Have you considered that?"

"I have."

Aaron, or Seth – whatever his name really was – shook his head furiously. "Absolutely out of the question! Players cannot become Reapers just like that, you are—"

"_Very well_," Joshua cut him off before he had a chance to finish the sentence and raised his hand in order to motion for the other Reaper to halt. "If that is what you wish."

Remy took a deep breath. Aside from three pairs of eyes on her, she could feel something else; a series of sharp pangs running up her back. Pain. She stumbled and looked over her shoulder to see coal black wings growing out of her shoulder blades. There were no pinions nor muscles like a bird's, instead the wings were made of hollow, sharp-cut metallic bones resembling an elaborate artistic tattoo design, almost like the tail of the wolf, paws of the bear, or skeleton of the tiger, turning and twisting at certain angles in order to form the ideal shape with the occassional claw-like branches. Thirteen had become the herald of death.

"Remy, you can't do this—" Cameron began to stutter, but was quickly cut off by the enraged brunette.

"Why the hell not? Are you more content with killing me? There is no other way!"

"No, of course not, b-but, you can't—"

"_Why not?_" Remy yelled.

The Dead God's Pad had fallen into silence only interrupted by the sound of bubbles bursting underwater. Most of their animal neighbors, too, stilled into solemn tranquility.

Remy had everything taken from her – her life, her purpose and now herself – and neither of them knew the reason why. The so-called Mr. Griffiths wasn't too talkative either and Cameron heard her own heart beating because there was really no point in trying to argue with the Fates.

She tried anyway. "Because I'm falling for you and I want you to be happy, and I know happiness is something they can't give you," she whispered hauntingly quietly without diverting her gaze from Thirteen's greyish baby blues. She didn't know what she was saying. The words just seemed to come out of her without her having any real control over their meaning. She was able to comprehend the syntax, but not the impact of the message. Yet somehow, saying this at this exact moment seemed right.

All wrong. Everything. All of it was upside down from the start. _Every single fucking thing._

"Can you?" Remy whispered just as quietly.

There was no sarcasm or rhetoric in the way the question was asked. If nothing else, it sounded hopeful, as if one was hanging on a straw representing their only chance.

"Fine, now that we have that settled, move so I can erase this worm," Aaron cut in and mumbled something under his breath. At that point, Thirteen, the novice in the Reaper league, began to grow pale until she could be seen through like the ghost she had become.

"What do you mean erase? You said you could resurrect only one person this week and that person is now her!" she exclaimed in panic, eyes darting from one Reaper to another and then to the one who had seconds ago confessed her love for Thirteen, a feeling that should never have arisen in either of them, didn't make sense and killed the last breath of certainty there was, replacing it with deceit and a shattered mirror of illusions.

"Neither of you completed the last mission. And for the record, I never said I could resurrect only one person; the Composer here mentioned that I _had already decided_ how many Players would be revived this round. The number I had decided was zero. None of you pass and I'll collect my prize."

It was over. She was disappearing from the world of the living and the realm of the read as her voice grew weaker and weaker but could still be heard like the howling echoes of the wind in a garden of daffodils.

_ALLISON!_

* * *

><p><em>"The arrangement was clear. She had no chance to complete the mission without her partner."<em>

_ "You know they wouldn't have done it."_

_ "Send her back into the game."_

_ "No! Your reign of terror is over. The week has ended. I don't have to listen to you any longer."_

_ "The day is not over yet. _Send her back into the game_."_

_ "No."_

_ "You still haven't collected your prize. Based on my previous experiences with the two of them, I'd say she can last pretty long. Are you willing to risk it?"_

_ "I have waited for twenty-seven years. I'm sick of waiting."_

_ "Then send her back into the game and watch magic happen."_

_ "The only magic happening here are your cheap card tricks and riddles."_

_"I will not ask you again. She is my proxy and I wish for her to return for a second round that she rightfully deserves. The rules do not forbid this. Maybe if you try hard enough, you might win both their Souls."_

_ "That's an awful lot of effort for two overrated Souls. – Fine. I'll have it your way then. But you have no say in this week whatsoever."_

_ "Of course. In return, you promise to voluntarily transport two of the greatest Players into the RG."_

_ "Fair enough, Sir. Fair enough."_

**- CHAPTER CLOSED -**

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>AHAHAH did you honestly think I'd let it end today? ...Actually I did, but... *cough* there is really no point in arguing with the Fates, is there. Now I'm contemplating making a "new story" for Week 2... just so it feels fresh. This fic is my baby and writing it is so much fun, I just couldn't give it up ;_; (Plus, I kind of promised there would be week 2.. so yeah.)

_See you there._

**Author's Second Note:** Okay, the sequel has been officially named "The World Dreams with You" and should be available within a few days or.. the month or.. you know. More Cadley awesomeness on the way!


End file.
